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Police briefs 5/17/18

Clay County Sheriff's Office
Posted 5/16/18

Jax man collared for car theftFLEMING ISLAND – A May 13 traffic stop for driving without headlights on during evening hours, ended in an arrest for a Jacksonville man.The Clay County …

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Police briefs 5/17/18


Posted

Jax man collared for car theft
FLEMING ISLAND – A May 13 traffic stop for driving without headlights on during evening hours, ended in an arrest for a Jacksonville man.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office stopped Joshua Ryan Blankenship, 27, on May 13 at 10:36 p.m. in the 1500 block of County Road 220 on Fleming Island.
According to the police report, the arresting officer ran a quick check on Blankenship’s identification and the vehicle he was driving. The vehicle search showed that the car, a Chrysler sedan, was reported stolen on May 11 from Walmart parking lot at 7075 Collins Rd. by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
According to the police report, the car belonged to a Doctors Inlet man who lives in Graduation Lane. No further details about the car theft were provided on the police report. Comments from two passengers in the car Blankenship was driving were redacted by the CCSO.
Blankenship was booked on one count each of grand theft auto and driving with a suspended license. At press time, he remained in the Clay County Jail where his bond is set at $52,505.

Truck theft and burglary ends in arrest
MIDDLEBURG – A Middleburg man faces charges of allegedly stealing a truck and about $200 worth of tools from inside a second vehicle at a home in Lake Asbury.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Jimmy Wayne Hodges Jr., 34, of Middleburg, on May 11 at 12:25 p.m. after an investigation.
According to the police report, the owner of the truck told police that his truck was stolen around approximately 9:08 a.m. on Feb. 2 from his home on Hidden Waters Drive North. He also said that $200 worth of tools were stolen from inside a Mercedes that was parked at the home.
On March 14, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement positively identified Hodges using fingerprints they recovered from the exterior of the Mercedes.
Overall, Hodges faces three counts of grand theft auto, and one count each of possession of methamphetamine and burglary.
At press time, he remained in the Clay County Jail without bond.

Shooter caught in Argyle
ORANGE PARK – A Jacksonville man was arrested on a warrant after allegedly shooting a man in the Orange Park area.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office, along with Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and U.S. Marshals, arrested Kraig Dontell Long Jr., 29, on May 9, in the 6400 block of Argyle Forest Boulevard.
On May 5, Long and another man got into an argument outside the home of a woman, that according to the warrant, that both men have children with. The argument elevated to a fist fight and Long was able to get the other man pinned on the ground, according to the police report.
Long then took out a handgun and fired one shot into the lower abdomen of the other man before fleeing in a vehicle. The victim was transported to Orange Park Medical Center and was last known to be listed in stable condition after the bullet was removed from near his spine. Long was located and questioned at the CCSO Blanding Boulevard sub-station before being transported to the Clay County Jail following his arrest where he remains at press time.
Long faces two felonies for the incident, including attempted second-degree murder and aggravated battery with a firearm. He is being held on about $500,000 bond and is set to appear in court on June 21.

False imprisonment charge in drug arrest
ORANGE PARK – A man was arrested after moving in with an Orange Park area woman and refusing to leave while trafficking drugs through the residence.
The Clay County Sheriff’s Office arrested Christopher Scott Barrett, 34, on May 9 after his girlfriend requested for officers to remove him from her residence in the Tanglewood area.
According to the police report, Barrett met the victim while she was visiting Panama City Beach where she had spent about a week with him before returning to Orange Park when he began acting erratically. Barrett then called the woman and apologized and she took him back and invited him to come visit her at her Orange Park apartment.
Once there, Barrett took total control of the woman’s life – he monitored her phone activity and wouldn’t let her out of his sight. According to her testimony, when they went out in public he would make her hold onto his arm and keep her head down. All of this while he was almost constantly high on methamphetamine and only sleeping for brief periods of time, according to the report.
Eventually Barrett took her to Georgia where he was to buy more meth and he forced her to lay all the way back in the carseat and drape a blanket over her head so she couldn’t see where they were going. The woman became scared of Barrett and could not get him to leave. One day he was in another room and she escaped in her truck which she drove to meet with her father and eventually went to the CCSO for assistance.
Deputies, with the permission of the victim, busted down the door to her apartment and found Barrett hiding underneath a couch. They also able located a backpack that contained trafficable amounts of meth, marijuana and pills. Barrett was transported to the Clay County Jail following his arrest where he remains.
Barrett faces four felonies including adult false imprisonment, trafficking methamphetamine, possession of more than 20 grams of marijuana, possession of prescription medications without a valid prescription, as well as a misdemeanor charge for drug paraphernalia. Barrett is being held on $132,514 and will appear in court on June 6.