| Probable cause affidavit: |
SUBMITTED BY: STANTON, JOE 0260 (AR07004547) DID UNLAWFULLY AND KNOWINGLY TAKE, OBTAIN OR USE OR ENDEAVOR TO TAKE, OBTAIN OR USE THE PROPERTY OF KANGAROO EXPRESS, TO WIT: LOTTERY TICKETS BY TAKING POSSESSION OF OR CARRYING AWAY THE SAID MERCHANDISE, WITH INTENT TO TEMPORARILY OR PERMANENTLY DEPRIVE KANGAROO EXPRESS, A MERCHANT, OF THE POSSESSION, USE, BENEFIT, OR FULL RETAIL VALUE OF SAID PROPERTY, SAID PROPERTY BEING OF A VALUE OF LESS THAN $300.00, IN VIOLATION OF FLORIDA STATE STATUTES 812.015, 812.014(1), AND 812.014(3)(A). ON 081707, AT APPROXIMATELY 1254 HOURS I WAS DISPATCHED TO THE KANGAROO EXPRESS STORE LOCATED AT 745 SOUTH US HIGHWAY 41 IN INVERNESS IN REFERENCE TO A THEFT THAT HAD ALREADY OCCURRED. UPON MY ARRIVAL AT APPROXIMATELY 1302 HOURS, I MADE CONTACT WITH THE LOSS PREVENTION OFFICER WHO IS THE COMPLAINANT. THE COMPLAINANT ADVISED THAT ON 081607, HE WAS WORKING AS LOSS PREVENTION INVESTIGATOR FOR THE PANTRY INCORPORATED. THE COMPLAINANT ADVISED THAT HE WAS TOLD OF A POSSIBLE DISHONEST EMPLOYEE, AND ON 081707, HE RESPONDED TO STORE 6183, WHICH IS THE KANGAROO EXPRESS LOCATED AT THE AFOREMENTIONED ADDRESS. HE CAME TO THE STORE TO REVIEW PAPERWORK AND TO VIEW VIDEO FOR WORK ON 080607, WHICH WAS THE THIRD SHIFT. HE ADVISED THAT IT WAS AT THAT TIME HE FOUND THAT THERE WAS A SHORTAGE ON THE END OF THE SHIFT'S PAPERWORK IN THE AMOUNT OF $375.77. HE CONTINUED TO ADVISE THAT UPON REVIEWING THE VIDEO TAPE FOR THE SAME DATE, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT A STORE ASSOCIATE WHO IS THE DEFENDANT, MS LAURA ELROD, WAS PULLING SCRATCH LOTTERY TICKETS FROM THE LOTTERY DISPENSER, SCRATCHING THE LOTTERY TICKETS, AND NOT PAYING FOR THEM. THE COMPLAINANT FURTHER ADVISED THAT UPON REVIEWING SOME OF THE STORE'S DOCUMENTS, IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THERE WERE SOME PERSONAL CHECKS THAT WERE WRITTEN MADE OUT FOR DEPOSIT, AND SENT TO THE BANK, HOWEVER, THEY WERE ADVISED THAT THE CHECKS DID NOT CLEAR. THE COMPLAINANT WENT ON TO STATE THAT AT APPROXIMATELY 0140 HOURS HE NOTICED THE DEFENDANT PULLING SCRATCH LOTTERY TICKETS AND OBSERVED THIS UNTIL APPROXIMATELY 0430 HOURS. THE RESULT WAS EIGHTY NINE TICKETS BEING PULLED, ADDING UP TO $637.00. THE COMPLAINANT FURTHER INDICATED THAT THE AMOUNT OF PERSONAL CHECKS WHICH WERE WRITTEN BY THE DEFENDANT WERE FOUR CHECKS TOTALING $175.00. I DID REVIEW THE VIDEO WHICH WAS TAKEN DURING THE SHIFT 0F 080607, WHICH SHOWED THE DEFENDANT WORKING BETWEEN THE TIMES OF 2324 AND 05 SECONDS THROUGH 080707 AT 0419 HOURS. I OBSERVED SEVERAL PIECES OF FOOTAGE WHICH SHOWED THE DEFENDANT DOING WHAT APPEARED TO BE GOING TO THE SCRATCH OFF LOTTERY TICKET DISPENSER AND THEN BACK TO THE CORNER OF THE COUNTER AREA LOCATED CLOSEST TO THE WINDOW, WHICH WOULD BE THE COUNTER ON THE WEST SIDE OF THE STORE, WITH HER BACK FACING THE CAMERA, DOING WHAT APPEARED TO BE SCRATCHING LOTTERY TICKETS. AT ONE POINT DURING THE VIDEO, I ACTUALLY OBSERVED THE DEFENDANT HOLDING SEVERAL LOTTERY TICKETS IN ONE HAND AS SHE LEFT THE SCRATCH OFF LOTTERY TICKET DISPENSER. A COPY OF THE VIDEO SHOWING THE DEFENDANT DURING THE TIMES THAT THE THEFT OCCURRED WAS OBTAINED AND TURNED INTO EVIDENCE, AND A PROPERTY RECEIPT WAS COMPLETED AND A COPY WAS PROVIDED TO THE COMPLAINANT. A WRITTEN SWORN STATEMENT WAS ALSO OBTAINED FROM THE COMPLAINANT, WHICH WILL BE TURNED INTO RECORDS. I ALSO OBTAINED COPIES OF RECEIPTS FOR THE LOTTERY TICKETS THAT TOTALED THE $637.00 AND A COPY OF THE DEPOSIT SLIP SHOWING THE AMOUNTS OF THE CHECKS THAT THE DEFENDANT HAD WRITTEN AND WILL BE TURNING THESE INTO CITRUS COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE RECORDS DEPARTMENT. I ALSO SPOKE WITH THE KANGAROO EXPRESS MANAGER AND OBTAINED A COPY OF HER REPORT, WHICH INDICATES THAT ON TUESDAY, 080707, SHE ARRIVED AT WORK AND STARTED TO PREPARE TO CLOSE HER DAY. WHEN SHE OPENED THE SAFE, THE DEFENDANT TOLD HER THAT SHE THOUGHT SHE NEEDED TO GO HOME. THE MANAGER THEN CLOSED AND NOTICED THAT THEY HAD SOLD AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF SCRATCH OFF TICKETS, FOR IT BEING THIRD SHIFT. THE MANAGER FURTHER INDICATED THAT WHEN SHE COUNTED THE "DROPS," THEY WERE $340.00 SHORT COMPARED TO WHAT WAS ON THE SHIFT REPORT. THE MANAGER FURTHER ADVISED THAT WHEN SHE LOOKED AT THE "DROP" LOG, SHE NOTICED A STRANGE SEQUENCE OF "DROPS," WHICH EXPLAINED THE DIFFERENCE IN "DROP" AMOUNTS. AT THAT TIME SHE WENT BACK AND REVIEWED THE VIDEO AND SAW THE DEFENDANT SCRATCHING TICKETS, RINGING THEM UP, BUT NOT PUTTING ANY MONEY IN THE DRAWER. THE MANAGER FURTHER STATED THAT THE DEFENDANT DID USE FOUR CHECKS TOTALING AN AMOUNT OF $175.00, WHICH SHE BELIEVES THE DEFENDANT WAS USING TO TRY AND PAY FOR SOME OF THE TICKETS. HOWEVER ALL THE CHECKS WERE DECLINED THROUGH THE CHECK MACHINE. IN SPEAKING WITH THE MANAGER, I FURTHER LEARNED THAT THE DEFENDANT WOULD HAVE KNOWN THAT THE CHECKS WERE DECLINED AT THE TIME SHE ATTEMPTED TO USE THEM. THEREFORE, THE CHECKS WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN GOOD TO PAY FOR ANY ITEMS THAT THE DEFENDANT WOULD HAVE WANTED TO PURCHASE. A COPY OF THE MANAGERS REPORT WILL ALSO BE TURNED INTO RECORDS. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT AT THE TIME OF VIEWING THE VIDEO DUE TO THE VIDEO QUALITY AND POSITION OF THE DEFENDANT DURING HER SHIFT, I AM UNABLE TO DETERMINE THE ACTUAL AMOUNT OF TICKETS THAT THE DEFENDANT HAD TAKEN AND SCRATCHED OFF AND DID NOT PAY FOR. I RESPONDED TO THE DEFENDANT'S RESIDENCE, WHERE I MADE CONTACT WITH THE DEFENDANT, I IDENTIFIED MYSELF AND EXPLAINED TO THE DEFENDANT WHY I WAS THERE. I ASKED THE DEFENDANT IF SHE WOULD SPEAK TO ME REGARDING THE INCIDENT, AT WHICH TIME THE DEFENDANT AGREED TO SPEAK WITH ME. THE DEFENDANT STATED THAT ON THE LAST NIGHT THAT SHE WORKED, WHICH WOULD HAVE ALSO HAVE BEEN HER LAST DAY WORKING, SHE WENT IN AT APPROXIMATELY 2300 HOURS AND HAD A SEVERE MIGRAINE. THE DEFENDANT STATED THAT SHE KNOWS THAT SHE DID PURCHASE SOME SCRATCH OFF TICKETS WITH CASH, HOWEVER, STATED THAT SHE DOES NOT KNOW HOW MUCH CASH SHE HAD WITH HER. THE DEFENDANT ALSO STATED THAT SHE ALSO WROTE SOME CHECKS FOR THE LOTTERY TICKETS, AND STATED THAT SHE IS NOT SURE HOW MUCH SHE SPENT BECAUSE SHE CANNOT REMEMBER HOW MUCH CASH SHE HAD ON HER. THE DEFENDANT WENT ON TO STATE THAT SHE THINKS IT WAS ABOUT $40.00 WORTH OF TICKETS THAT SHE TOOK WITHOUT PAYING. THE DEFENDANT ADDITIONALLY STATED THAT SHE LEFT SHORTLY AFTER THE MANAGER GOT THERE BECAUSE SHE WAS NOT FEELING WELL. WHEN I CONFRONTED THE DEFENDANT ABOUT THE $637.00 WORTH OF LOTTERY TICKETS WHICH HAD BEEN TAKEN AND NOT PAID FOR, THE DEFENDANT DENIED TAKING THAT AMOUNT OF SCRATCH OFF TICKETS. THE DEFENDANT ALSO EXPLAINED TO ME THAT THE CHECKS THAT SHE HAD WRITTEN HAD CLEARED AFTER I ADVISED HER OF THE CHECKS THAT WERE DECLINED. IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT THE CHECKS THAT THE DEFENDANT SHOWED ME THAT WERE CLEARED WERE ON HER COMPUTER THROUGH HER ONLINE BANKING. THE AMOUNT SEEMED SIMILAR TO THOSE WHICH WERE DECLINED AT THE KANGAROO EXPRESS HOWEVER, THEY WERE SHOWING "PENDING" TRANSACTION, AND IT WAS SHOWING THE DATE OF 081707. AT THIS TIME I ADVISED THE DEFENDANT SHE WAS BEING PLACED UNDER ARREST FOR RETAIL THEFT, WALKED THE DEFENDANT OUT TO MY PATROL VEHICLE, SECURED HER IN THE REAR SEAT OF MY PATROL VEHICLE, HANDCUFFED (DOUBLE LOCKED) AND TRANSPORTED HER TO THE CITRUS COUNTY DETENTION FACILITY FOR PROCESSING. THE BOND IS SET AT $250.00 PER THE BOND SCHEDULE. *NOT-EXEMPT* |
