Pasco Detectives Link 17-Year-Old To Wesley Chapel Car Burglaries

WESLEY CHAPEL, FL – Pasco County Sheriff’s deputies believe they’ve arrested at least one person responsible for a series of car burglaries in south Pasco County.

Detectives were able to match a fingerprint from a crime scene to 17-year-old Jeffrey McBride. They believe McBride was at the scene of the Feb. 12 burglary spree in the Ashley Pines subdivision off State Road 54, Wesley Chapel, in which a number of cars were burglarized and one car was stolen.

McBride is already in jail on another charge. Pasco detectives added grand theft auto and auto burglary to his charges Thursday, March 1. McBride declined to make a statement to detectives.

The sheriff’s office is continuing to investigate the other car burglaries that have plagued Wesley Chapel, Lutz and Land O’ Lakes over the past several months.

The latest occurred Tuesday at the Seven Oaks Professional Plaza, 2242 Oak Circle, Wesley Chapel, when burglars broke a car window and grabbed a purse out of a parked car.

Detectives aren’t sure if there is a gang of burglars operating in the area or if several unrelated thieves are committing the crimes.

In some cases, burglars roam through neighborhoods at night, looking for unlocked cars. However, bolder thieves have begun to scan the parking lots of businesses during the day and at night, breaking the windows of cars when they spot a purse or other valuables inside the car.

The sheriff’s office is continuing to urge residents to lock their cars and never leave valuables in plain sight.

Image via Pasco Sheriff