A Leesburg man was arrested after allegedly stealing a truck and spraypainting it to mask its appearance.
Deputies with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office received a call about a stolen white Dodge Ram belonging to the fleet of a company around 7 a.m. Tuesday, according to an arrest report from the Mount Dora Police Department. The suspect, later identified as 32-year-old Bobby Lynn Russell, had stolen the vehicle from a staging area off Country Club Boulevard.
The truck’s built-in GPS was used to track it to the 7-Eleven at 2700 E Orange Ave., Eustis, where deputies saw it had been spraypainted black and red to mask its appearance. It also had another license plate belonging to a gold 2003 Dodge pickup, which did not match the VIN. The truck was empty at the time, but a nervous Russell soon exited the 7-Eleven with red paint on his arms, the report said.
Russell told law enforcement that he had been driving the vehicle on and off since Friday, after borrowing it from a friend. This matched the complainant’s timeline, which stated he had last seen the vehicle parked at the Country Club of Mount Dora. Other items inside the vehicle, including a generator and the in-car dash cam, were no longer there, the report said.
Surveillance footage from the store showed Russell and a male passenger going into the 7-Eleven. Russell looked outside as he noticed an LCSO patrol vehicle drive by. Upon the arrival of more deputies, he spoke with the passenger before abruptly leaving the store out of the back exit to walk down the roadway, the report said.
Additionally, law enforcement had seen Russell try to conceal something in his hand when they stopped him in the road. Further investigation revealed a small, clear plastic at his feet, and inside were 1.3 grams of methamphetamine, the report said.
When asked why he was in the road, he stated that he had gone to 7-Eleven in his friend’s truck, and he was now walking to his friend’s house down the street. He could not say who this friend was or give directions to their house, the report said.
He also stated the keys to the truck were inside the vehicle. But the owner advised that the ignition had been previously damaged, and it did not need a key to start. The owner had the only set of keys in his possession, the report said.
A check of the vehicle’s interior yielded broken glass that had come from the shattered driver’s side window. There were bags of Russell’s clothes inside the vehicle, as well as items in the bed of the truck that he claimed were his, the report said.
During this time, a bystander approached the scene to ask what was going on. She stated she knew the truck’s owner and that Russell and another woman arrived at her house the night before in the truck. The passenger confirmed he was at the house when Russell arrived and asked if he needed a ride to 7-Eleven, the report said.
Russell later advised that he had been to prison for selling narcotics and had recently gotten out of jail on bond for grand theft of a motorcycle on Feb. 10. A criminal history check confirmed he had been arrested for stealing a motorcycle months prior and drug charges over the years, the report said.
The Tennessee native was arrested on charges of grand theft (over $750 under $5,000), no driver’s license (never had one), grand theft auto, possession of methamphetamine and criminal mischief. He was booked at the Lake County Jail and released after posting $11,500 bond.
He was also arrested in February after allegedly failing to return a motorcycle he was taking for a rest ride.