According to the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office (SJSO), a 34-year old South Florida man was charged with two vehicle burglaries in South Ponte Vedra Beach/Vilano Beach early Wednesday afternoon following a brief chase.
The suspect, identified as Jerry Thomas Fowler of Miami, was charged with two counts each of burglary to a conveyance, petit theft and criminal mischief, along with resisting arrest without violence. He also was driving without a driver’s license.
The investigation began at 12:45 p.m. Wednesday when deputies responded to a smash and grab burglary to a vehicle at the Surf Side parking lot in which a woman’s purse had been reported stolen. At about the same time, another smash and grab burglary was reported at the middle parking lot at the Guana State Park with the suspect driving a silver Hyundai. Deputies spotted the vehicle traveling southbound at Beachcomber Way and attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The driver refused to stop and continued over the Vilano Bridge. A traffic stop was conducted in the 100 block of San Marco Ave. The suspect was taken into custody without further incident, and deputies located evidence from two car burglaries inside the suspect’s vehicle.
Fowler was booked into the County Jail on bonds totaling $12,000. Additional charges are pending further investigation by detectives.
