A burglary suspect was nabbed in a cigarette heist after a forcible entry at a Publix grocery store in Leesburg.
Officers were called early Saturday morning to the grocery store at Palm Plaza after an employee reported a man was using a power jack to gain access through a rear door, according to an arrest report from the Leesburg Police Department.
When the officers arrived at the Publix, two entered the front of the store while one secured the rear where the intruder had gained entry.
The officers found 61-year-old Edward L. Brown in a back office where he had been using a hammer to try and break into a cash register. The officers ordered the South Carolina native to get on the floor where they took him into custody.
The officers removed a backpack from Brown and found $528.75 worth of tobacco products inside as well as a pipe with what appeared to be cocaine residue.
A security video showed Brown using a manual pallet jack to pry open the back door and crawl through the opening he had created. The video also showed Brown stuffing his backpack with cigarettes and cigars as well as smashing the cash register with a hammer.
While being booked at the Leesburg Police Station, a records check showed that Brown has previous grand and petit theft convictions. He was charged with burglary to an unoccupied structure, petit theft with two or more prior convictions and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was transported to the Lake County Jail where bond was set at $13,000.
Brown had been arrested in 2021 at the Susan Street Sports Complex.
