A Leesburg man with a suspended license was arrested after being caught driving his mother’s vehicle.
Police observed the driver of a black Toyota RAV4, later identified as 59-year-old Raymond Crosley, traveling north on U.S. Highway 27/441 approaching the crossroad of Shadow Hill around 6:45 a.m. Wednesday, according to an arrest report from the Fruitland Park Police Department.
The officer ran the attached tag and learned it was actively stolen out of Sumter County. He then positioned his patrol car behind the stolen vehicle and waited to conduct a traffic stop until more units arrived. It eventually pulled over on the side of the road outside 925 Jacaranda Drive in Lady Lake, the report said.
The officer placed the two occupants of the vehicle at gun point and started giving commands. Crosley, the driver, was detained and put in the back of the patrol car while the female passenger was also detained and put in the back of a Lady Lake Unit. The report noted the vehicle was confirmed stolen around this time.
While another officer tried to read Crosley his rights, he stated he did not know and did not understand. He also spontaneously uttered that his mom wanted the vehicle back, but he did not steal it, the report said.
The passenger, on the other hand, explained that she understood the rights and wanted to speak with officers. The officer asked if she knew the vehicle was stolen and what her relationship with Crosley was, to which she stated she did not know and that it was his. She advised he was a family friend who she did not know much about. As a result, she was later released from the scene, the report said.
The report noted that Crosley had a suspended license at the time of the stop. His first suspension was in July 2023 for a financial responsibility. He also received a citation for his suspended license on Jan. 29 and failed to pay it, too.
Due to his suspended license and temporarily depriving the owner of the vehicle, Crosley was placed under arrest and taken to Lake County Jail without incident. While there, he was issued a citation for driving with a suspension that came with a court date of March 12. The officer explained that all he needed was a signature on the court copy, which was not an admission of guilt, just an acknowledgment of the court date, the report said.
However, Crosley stated he was not going to sign the citation. The officer further advised that if he did not sign, he would receive an additional citation for failure to sign a criminal citation. Crosley told him he did not care, the report said.
The Alabama native was ultimately charged with grand theft auto, driving while license suspended and failure to sign citation. Bond was set at $6,500.
