A Leesburg woman was arrested after a firearm was found in her possession while she was alone in a neighborhood under construction.
Officers discovered a blue Chevrolet utility vehicle, later found to belong to 45-year-old Carla Gail Fitzgerald, in the area of Chipping Sparrow Drive and Harris Hawk Drive in the Silver Pointe Lake neighborhood around 1 a.m. Sunday, according to an arrest report from the Leesburg Police Department.
The report noted the neighborhood was a newly developing one. The vehicle was found in the far east portion, which had yet to break ground in starting construction and was about a half mile away from the nearest house. The vehicle was positioned in the middle of the road with no structures nearby, deep in the back of the neighborhood.
Upon looking inside the vehicle from both the driver and passenger’s windows, the officers could see a firearm in the cupholder of the center console. The vehicle appeared to be empty. It was also filled with miscellaneous items, the report said.
While walking back to this vehicle, the officers noticed a person lying or hiding in a ditch about 20ft from the vehicle. They approached the subject, later identified as Fitzgerald, who was face down in the ditch and not responding to callouts. She had a black flashlight and a cell phone in her back pocket, three different knives on or around her person, and a set of keys within arms’ reach, the report said.
The report noted that prior to the discovery of Fitzgerald, officers had seen an illuminated flashlight in the distance while training near Chipping Sparrow Drive and Carolina Wren Way. This light would have been where Fitzgerald was found.
Once the officers rolled Fitzgerald over and rubbed her sternum, she began to have a “seizure.” She told law enforcement she suffered from epilepsy and was having an episode. EMS was contacted due to medical concerns, the report said.
While waiting for EMS, Fitzgerald advised that the truck did not belong to her, and she last remembered being with her “nephew.” She could not recall how she ended up in the ditch. She began to have another “seizure” when the officers asked more questions to inquire about the suspicious circumstances, the report said.
Dispatch then informed the officers that Fitzgerald had an active Lake County warrant. EMS arrived on scene and began to render aid. Medical personnel told the officers that the seizures they saw were fake, the report said.
Based on the circumstances, Fitzgerald appeared to be involved in criminal activity, possibly burglarizing the remote homes in the subdivision. Although she denied any involvement with the vehicle, it was determined that the keys found in her possession were for the truck. Prior call history also showed a traffic stop with her in the vehicle, the report said.
A K-9 unit completed a free-air sniff around the vehicle, which led to a positive alert and probable cause to search the vehicle. The firearm in plain sight turned out to be a Bryco Arms, .380 caliber, loaded with four rounds of ammunition. The vehicle was also loaded with tools, personal items and a pile of jewelry wrapped in a cloth, the report said.
Due to the concern that some of the items in the vehicle may be related to unreported burglaries, the search was ended, and the vehicle was secured for a no-touch tow. The vehicle was removed from the scene, and a police hold was instilled on the vehicle to due to the items inside, the report said.
Fitzgerald was determined to be a convicted felon. On Feb. 12, 2003, she was convicted in a Sumter County case. She also had two other convictions, the report said.
Fitzgerald was arrested on charges of possession of weapon or ammo by convicted felon and loitering and prowling. She was transported to Lake County Jail with bond set at $11,000.