Man Tried to Ransom Stolen Car Back to Owner, Cops Say

A Florida man faces grand theft auto charges after police say he swiped an old Toyota and then tried to sell it back to its owner about two weeks later.

The unusual ransom case began to unfold on June 11 when Thomas Funicello’s 1998 Toyota Camry was stolen from outside his home. Funicello filed a report with the Boynton Beach Police Department and hoped for the best.

About two weeks later, Funicello did receive a call about his stolen car. That call didn’t come in from police. Instead, a man Funicello didn’t know was on the other end of the line, offering to sell the ride back for $200, a police report stated.

Needing the car to get around, Funicello agreed to meet the man at a local RaceTrac store to exchange cash for the ride, the report said. Funicello, however, also called on the police department for some assistance.

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Funicello ultimately reported for the exchange as promised. What the “seller” didn’t know was that two Boynton Beach officers were also there, watching the exchange from an unmarked patrol car, the report said.

When the “seller” showed up with another man in the vehicle, officers pounced.

That’s when the man trying to sell the car back “spontaneously uttered that he bought the car from an unknown person in Riviera Beach for $400,” the report said. He told officers he knew the vehicle was stolen and wanted to get some of the money back. He also said “he believed he was doing a good deed by returning the vehicle to Funicello.”

While it remains unclear just why the man tried to sell the car back, Funicello figures it wasn’t an easy vehicle to unload.

“He probably realized he couldn’t sell it, so he thought he would just sell it back to me,” Funicello told the Palm Beach Post.

Whatever the reason, the act cost the “seller” a trip to the Palm Beach County Jail. Marquis Whipple, 23, was ultimately charged with grand theft auto. He was booked into the facilities following the June 26 exchange and later released in lieu of $7,500 bond.

Booking photo courtesy of the Palm Beach County Jail