Three teens arrested on charges of car theft at Ponte Vedra apartment complex

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Three 18-year-old males were arrested on charges of vehicle theft on Dec. 31 in Ponte Vedra Beach after one of the subjects was found sleeping in a stolen car, according to the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office (SJSO).

According to SJSO’s Facebook page, a deputy responded to a report of a suspicious person in a 2016 dark blue Cadillac in the parking lot of a community pool-tennis area. The deputy found 18-year-old Terrence T. Chavious of Jacksonville sleeping in the car, and as the deputy was speaking with the subject, a report of a stolen car matching the Cadillac’s description was received, prompting the arrest of Chavious. Two other subjects, Brendan Gerard Linn, 18, and Robert Thomas Cruceta, 18, both of Ponte Vedra Beach, were also arrested in connection with the theft and charged with vehicle theft. The SJSO deputy said Chavious was found “just down the road from Cruceta’s residence,” which is on La Reserve Drive in Ponte Vedra Beach.

According to SJSO arrest reports, the three friends went “car hopping” in The Fountains apartment complex in Ponte Vedra Beach. The reports state one of the teens found the vehicle in question unlocked with the keys inside and took it. The three teens then took a joy ride in the vehicle committing other car burglaries, according to the report. The arrest reports also state Linn provided the deputy with a video of him driving the stolen vehicle with Chavious and Cruceta as passengers.

According to the SJSO’s Facebook post, additional property was also recovered from the vehicle, believed to be from other burglaries in the area. Chavious was also arrested on a misdemeanor charge in the theft of four cans of beer from the Daily’s Shell Station in Ponte Vedra Beach.

The three were booked in the St. Johns County jail on Dec. 31, and according to jail records, Chavious and Linn are both still there. Cruceta was released on Jan. 2.