Florida Teen Accused of Trying to Steal BMWs and Take Officer’s Patrol Truck After Claiming “I Didn’t Steal Anything Yet”
DAYTONA BEACH, FLORIDA — An 18-year-old Florida man was arrested and tased after police say he attempted to steal multiple vehicles from a BMW dealership, then tried to take control of a responding officer’s patrol truck during a chaotic confrontation caught on body camera footage.
According to the Daytona Beach Police Department, Jayden Brown is facing three counts of grand theft of a motor vehicle, burglary of an occupied structure, and criminal mischief following the January 14 incident.
Police Say Teen Repeatedly Returned to Dealership Despite No Money or Credit
Investigators say Brown arrived at a BMW dealership in Daytona Beach around 5 p.m. with his girlfriend and a friend. Despite allegedly having no money or credit, Brown attempted to purchase multiple vehicles, according to a charging affidavit.
Witnesses told police Brown appeared disoriented and fixated on buying several BMWs, allegedly claiming he would soon become rich.
His girlfriend told officers that Brown had not slept for several days and was acting erratically. A friend added that Brown “has not been in the right state of mind lately.”
Police say the trio left and returned to the dealership three separate times, each time trying to figure out how to obtain a vehicle.
Suspect Allegedly Entered Restricted Area and Tried to Start BMW X7
During the final visit, Brown allegedly argued with dealership management before attempting to enter multiple vehicles on the lot.
Authorities say he ran into a restricted employee-only area, gained access to a BMW X7, and sat inside while appearing to search for the start/stop button in an effort to drive away.
An employee told police he was cleaning the vehicle when he heard coworkers yelling at someone to leave. Moments later, Brown allegedly jumped out of the SUV and fled.
Both the girlfriend and the friend told officers they were unaware of Brown’s intentions and were not involved in the attempted theft.
Body Camera Shows Suspect Rushing Officer’s Patrol Truck
Body camera footage released by police shows an officer arriving at the dealership and exiting his patrol truck. Moments later, Brown is seen running around the back of the vehicle.
The officer can be heard ordering Brown to get on the ground. Instead, police say Brown opened the patrol truck’s door, prompting the officer to deploy a Taser.
“You tried to steal my car,” the officer is heard saying as Brown lay immobilized on the ground.
Suspect Makes Threats and Bizarre Claims After Arrest
While in custody, Brown allegedly made a series of rambling statements and threats toward officers.
“I didn’t steal anything yet,” Brown can be heard saying in the footage. “I was just trying to find out where my car was.”
When an officer repeated the word “yet,” Brown continued talking, allegedly claiming he had access to “thousands of guns” through military connections and threatening officers with job loss if they did not remove his handcuffs.
Additional Damage Allegedly Caused at Police Station
Brown was transported to a local hospital for evaluation before being taken to police headquarters.
Officers say that during transport, Brown attempted to tamper with the in-car camera. After being placed in a holding cell, he allegedly kicked a security camera, breaking its frame and resulting in the additional criminal mischief charge.
Court Proceedings Pending
Brown made his first court appearance the following day and is scheduled to return for arraignment on February 10.
Jail records show he is not currently listed as being held in the Volusia County Jail.
Police confirmed that Brown’s girlfriend and friend were not arrested and are not facing charges at this time.
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