- November 18, 2024
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Sometimes, the objects that make the Sheriff’s Office’s unclaimed property list aren’t worth much. Like these ones: Vacation magazine, partially burnt. Rubber clear object. Unopened Lifestyles condom.
But evidence custodians Mark Judd and Jason Prather, who bag it all and prepare it for disposal after 90 days of safekeeping, remember the items that are.
Moving monument
“There was a tombstone. It was a poured concrete tombstone, and this was probably about 10 years ago,” Judd said. “Somebody had found it on the side of the road.”
In most cases, the Sheriff’s Office melts down or otherwise destroys the things that sit in unclaimed property or found property for more than 90 days. But this was different. The tombstone was from the Depression era, Judd said, and deputies couldn’t track down a family member for the person who had died, or determine which cemetery it came from.
“After the 90 days went by, it’s like, ‘This is not something I can throw away. It’s not something I can dispose of. We’re going to keep it and keep looking.’”
The last name was common, which made the search difficult.
But then a deputy, Larry Jones, mentioned the tombstone to a pastor at his church, “And the pastor said,‘Yeah, I remember that family. He was buried up at the Masonic cemetery.’ So we were finally able to match it up with where it belonged,” Judd said.
Bringing out the big guns
Judd and Prather deal with about 4,000 pieces of evidence a year, plus another 3,000-3,500 other items that are found or are being held for safekeeping.
Many are guns, often held as a result of an injunction, or removed from a home where someone was Baker Acted, or taken from people who have been forbidden to have them.
Of the 124 items sitting in unclaimed property as of July 24, about 70 were firearms or ammunition. Of the 34 items in found property, about 3 were firearms or ammunition.
A lot of those are Saturday-night specials, but occasionally something valuable comes in.
“Sometimes you’ll have people cleaning out an old residence that the bank just recently took over, or where someone died, and you’ll have some property that’s left over in that,” Judd said.
The antitank gun was one of those, he said.
“This was probably about six or seven years ago. What had happened was an old WWII vet had died, and the wife had the son come over and they were going through his stuff.”
And they finally opened that old green crate he’d kept sitting in the corner of the garage, and discovered that it held a Swiss-made 1938 20mm antitank rifle — a roughly 7-foot long gun produced under contract for the German army.
“The craftsmanship on it was just unbelievable. The machining — it was like a watch, except it was a large-caliber rifle,” Judd said. “And it was like — 'aah' — you hate to destroy it. And we ended up having to take part of it to destroy it.”
The rifle could have been licensed at one point as a war trophy, Judd said, “But now that time frame had expired, and the son was like, ‘I’m not going to jail for this,’ and the wife was like, ‘I just want it out of the house, didn’t even know it existed, it was always just this old green crate that was in the corner of the garage,’ so we went — and they also had 250 rounds of ammunition with it — and we had St. Johns bomb disposal come down and take care of that stuff.”
The rifle, if it could have been licensed, would have been worth about $120,000, he said.
Smaller stuff
Then there are smaller things — enough bikes to fill a whole, separate room at the Sheriff’s Office headquarters, and common items like wallets, phones, knives.
“Some of the unclaimed cell phones have been donated to our victims’ services to be used for domestic violence victims, so that’s one way of recycling these items,” Deputy Paula Priester said.
The bikes, if no one comes for them, are donated to charities like the Sheriff’s Youth Ranch.
And there’s also miscellany like a piece of bandana, a portable radio, an Easton baseball bat. A church certificate with the owner’s name on it. A partially-burnt blanket. A Burger King Box.
Some of the seemingly-worthless items — like fast food wrappers — were collected as evidence. Deputy Paula Priester had to log them all into the Sheriff’s Office’s computer.
“I was actually giving these guys a hard time, because I was entering the items, and I said ‘What?’ And then we had a really kind of funny one – didn’t we have a condom? And I was like, ‘You guys have GOT to be kidding me.’ But, it is somebody’s property.”
Getting it back
Judd and Prather spread out manila envelops holding such unclaimed loot from a recent string of car burglaries in the Bunker area.
The envelopes had come from a single box; laid end to end, they covered a large conference table.
The Sheriff’s Office has hundreds of those boxes of unclaimed stuff, Prather said.
All people need to do to come in and claim something they lost, Judd said, is check the lists on the Sheriff’s Office website at flaglersheriff.com — go to “divisions,” then “evidence unit,” and scroll down — and call the nonemergency line at 437-4116 to make sure someone’s available to show the item, which would usually be 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
One of the things that makes it hard to reunites former owners with stolen goods, he said, is that people rarely have photos or serial numbers of the things that were stolen.
“Get your serial numbers, your makes and models. Photograph if you can. It’s a routine that I do anytime I make a purchase of something that I want to get back,” Judd said. “And it’s a good teaching experience for kids, too. My grandkids came over, and we got them new bikes. And the first thing we did is took them inside and wrote those down.”
BOX: Unclaimed property and found property
Items that aren’t unclaimed within 90 days and can’t be used by charities are generally melted down by being placed in 3000-degree molten metal at a recycling center. The procedure is witnessed by several deputies.
Unclaimed Property | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date | Case | Item | Description |
7/22/2014 | 22997-14 | Item 1 | Machette-I. Simpson |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 1 | S & W 40F .40 CAL-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 2 | Colt M1991 A1 .45 CAL-D. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 5 | Remington Arms MOD 740 .30-06-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 6 | FOX MOD/B 16GA Shotgun-D. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 7 | Glenfield MOD 60 .22LR-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 8 | Colt Sporter .223 AR15-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 9 | S & W MOD/686-4-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 10 | Ruger MOD P90DC .45ACP-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 11 | S & W .57 MOD/686-4-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 12 | Ruger Redhawk .44 MAG-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 13 | Ruger Security Six .357 Mag-D. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 14 | Westernfield Mod/740A-E MN 3030 Rifle-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 15 | 500RB Box .223-G. Moraski |
7/21/2014 | 69783-13 | Item 16 | Green ammo can full of misc. ammo-G. Moraski |
7/10/2014 | 61547-14 | PKG 4 | Black Beretta model 20, .25 cal handgun with magazine and ammo |
7/10/2014 | 61547-14 | PKG 5 | Smith & Wesson .38 Special and 3, .38 cal rounds |
7/10/2014 | 61547-14 | PKG 6 | 15, .357 Winchester rounds |
7/3/2014 | 36660*14 | PKG 1 | $388.50 Cash - E. Weber |
7/3/2014 | 36660-14 | PKG 1A | $64.00 - E. Weber |
7/3/2014 | 36660-14 | PKG 3 | Black wallet, Misc. cards-E. Weber |
7/3/2014 | 36660-14 | PKG 4 | S & W .357-E. Weber |
7/3/2014 | 36660-14 | PKG 9 | Handguns, Hoslters-E.Weber |
7/3/2014 | 36660-14 | PKG 10 | H & R 12GA-E. Weber |
7/3/2014 | 36660-14 | PKG 11 | Remington Model 552-E. Weber |
7/3/2014 | 59610-14 | PKG 1 | Pink container of personal defense chemical spray. Owner-M. Patten |
7/3/2014 | 59591-14 | PKG 1 | Davis Industries Model P-380 handgun w/magazine and holster (silver in color) Owner-M.L. Gavin |
7/2/2014 | 92190-13 | PKG 2 | Black LG cellular phone. Owner-Joseph Mazzella |
7/1/2014 | 58925-14 | PKG 2 | 17rounds Federal Personal Defense ammunition |
7/1/2014 | 58925-14 | PKG 1 | Remington 870 12 Ga. pump shotgun |
6/26/2014 | 56851-14 | 1 | Found Property - Angry Birds suitcase containing notebook and childrens clothes |
6/26/2014 | 56896-14 | PKG-1 | American Tactical Fatboy .45 W/Mag., T. VANBEVREN |
6/26/2014 | 56896-14 | PKG-2 | Double Nine Convertable Revolver .22, T. VANBEVREN |
6/26/2014 | 56896-14 | PKG-3 | Leftever Arms CO 12GA, T. VANBEVREN |
6/26/2014 | 56896-14 | PKG-4 | Sheridan Products Pellet Gun, T. VANBEVREN |
6/26/2014 | 56896-14 | PKG-5 | PT85 Pellet Gun, T. VANBEVEREN |
6/26/2014 | 56896-14 | PKG-6 | Misc. Ammo, T. VANBEVEREN |
6/26/2014 | 56896-14 | PKG-7 | Misc.. Knives, T VANBEVEREN |
6/12/2014 | 65461-12 | 9 | BLU MAGNA Great Divide Bike |
6/12/2014 | 10992-14 | PKG 1 | Mens WHT SCHWINN RST-OMNI Mountain Bike |
6/10/2014 | 51694-14 | 1 | Groovy Girls bike, pink and purple in color |
6/10/2014 | 50765-14 | 1 | Quest Sierra bike, purple in color |
6/10/2014 | 51970-14 | 1 | Next Slumber Party bike, pink in color |
6/9/2014 | 49312-14 | PKG 1 | Tommy Hilfiger wallet, Blk in Color - L. Iaremchuk |
6/9/2014 | 29739-12 | 1 | $57 in U.S. Currency |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 2 | Vacation Magazine Partially Burnt |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 3 | Church Certificate W/Owners/Suspects Name on it. |
6/9/2013 | 24133-12 | 4 | Buck Knife and Charred Piece of Bandana |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 5 | Burnt Laptop Cord |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 6 | Black T-Shirt in Burn Pile |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 7 | Burger King Box |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 8 | Burnt Laptop Bag |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 9 | Burnt Blanket |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 1B | Unopened Lifestyles Condom |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 2B | Disp Razor Wrapper & Plastic Piece |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 3B | Burger King Cup W/Lifestyles Condom |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 4B | Bottle of Lubricant, Lighter & Razor |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 7B | Toothbrush and Toothpaste |
6/9/2014 | 24133-12 | 8B | Rubber Clear Object |
06/05/2014 | 17535-12 | 1 | Easton aluminum baseball hat |
06/05/2014 | 36002-12 | 1 | Nike Slide flip flop, black in color |
06/05/2014 | 26241-12 | 1 | portable radio |
06/05/2014 | 23095-12 | 1 | aluminum pocket utility knife |
06/05/2014 | 36123-12 | 1 | 5" blade fixed blade knife with 7" handle |
06/05/2014 | 25097-12 | 1 | arrow tip and target head |
06/05/2014 | 38193-12 | 2 | Inspire HTC Cellular Phone, gray in color |
06/05/2014 | 33036-12 | 2 | Approximately 14" Dexter Russell chef knife |
06/05/2014 | 33036-12 | 1 | Approximately 12" bakers/chef knife |
5/16/2014 | 90692-13 | PKG 4 | CBC |
5/16/2014 | 90692-13 | PKG 3 | Gamo Cal/4.5 (.177) |
5/16/2014 | 90692-13 | PKG 2 | Remington Woodsmaster Modle 742 |
5/7/2014 | 25748-14 | PKG 1 | BLK Chevy Tahoe North Carolina Tag\Plate |
5/7/2014 | 25748-14 | PKG 4 | Car Key, Key Fob |
4/24/2014 | 59991-2008 | A9 | 1 Pair of Blue & White Infant Shoes - P. Hantzos |
4/21/2-14 | 20391-14 | 1 | SW .357 MAG Revolver W/Holster J. Rogers |
4/21/2014 | 20391-14 | 2 | Westernfield Model M830 .22LR J. Rogers |
4/21/2014 | 20391-14 | 3 | Taurus Judge Revolver W/Holster J. Rogers |
4/21/2014 | 20391-14 | 4 | Savage Model 444 12 GA Shotgun J. Rogers |
4/21/2014 | 20391-14 | 5 | 3X 12 GA Shotgun Shells, 10X .410 Shotgun Shells, 5X .45 Colt Rounds, 6X .357 MAG Rounds, 26X 38SPL J.Rogers |
4/21/2014 | 56433-13 | 1 | High WStandard Derringer .22 Mag C.Lumbert |
4/21/2013 | 56433-13 | 2 | Marlin .22 Bolt Action Rifle D.Sharp |
4/21/2014 | 18483-11 | 11S | Marlin .22 Cal. Model 60 D.Sharp |
4/21/2014 | 18483-11 | LAB 27 | Benelli 12 Gauge Shotgun D.Sharp |
4/21/2014 | 18483-11 | 8S | Jimenez Arms .25 Auto - D.Sharp |
4/21/2014 | 18483-11 | 12 | Arminus .22 Cal. Magnum Handgun D. Sharp |
1/21/2014 | 6141-14 | 1 | SILVER AND WHITE COLOR MONGOOSE LEDGE 2.1 UNISEX MOUNTAIN BIKE SN/ SNFSD13J96860 |
1/15/2014 | 79040-12 | 1-6 | MARLIN .22 MODEL 25MN RIFLE WITH BSA SCOPE,28 ROUNDS OF AMMUNITION AND CLIP FOR FIREARM, OWNER T. TROUT |
1/15/2014 | 17491-12 | 17 | Samsung cell phone |
1/14/2014 | 24586-12 | 3 | ITEM 3-VANS BOOKBAG W/ MEGAN WRITTEN ON SIDE |
1/13/2014 | 3071-14 | 1,2,3 | ITEMS OWNED BY V.H. KRIDER: TAURUS .357 MAG HANDGUN, S&W .38 HANDGUN, BLUE CASE. |
1/13/2014 | 3416-14 | 1, 1A | FLORIDA ID CARD,OWNER:ERIC FERRANTE. WALLET,DL,BANK AND GAS CARDS, OWNER: ERIC FIELDS. |
1/10/2014 | 2714-14 | 1 | KEY TO CAR OWNED BY ROY SCOTT IV |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 13 | SPRINGFIELD ARMORY .45 1911 |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 12 | DPMS ARMS .223 RIFLE |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 11 | HK USP .45 |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 10 | BERETTA MOD/92F 9MM |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 9 | 1000 ROUNDS OF AMMO AND HOLSTER |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 8 | SIG SAUER P226 |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 6 | UNKNOWN MODEL REVOLVER |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 5 | MARKSMAN BB GUN |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 4 | RUGER 10/22 |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 3 | NORINCO CHINESE SKS |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 2 | CHINESE SKS |
1/7/2014 | 1795-14 | 1 | REMINGTON 870 SHOTGUN |
1/6/2014 | 862-14 | 1,2 | OWNER J ATWOOD III - FN 5.7 PISTOL W MAGAZINE AND 21 ROUNDS, SN/386209922 |
1/6/2014 | 374-14 | 1-7 | ITEMS OWNED BY W. MINTON: COLT MKIV PISTOL W/MAG, COLT MKIV SERIES 80 MUSTAND 380 PISTOL W MAG,GLOCK 17 WITH MAG AND CART,S&W .22 CTC REVOLVER W HOLSTER, SHOTGUN 12 GA WITH BOX OF AMMO, WALLET,KEYS,SANYO CELLPHONE, $15.00 CASH |
1/2/2014 | 185-14 | 1,2 | MOSSBERG 12GA SHOTGUN AND BLACK RIFLE CASE,HARD PLASTIC, OWNER IS J.R. OTTEN |
1/2/2014 | 101976-13 | 1,2 | PKG1-TAURUS TCP 380 ACP HANDGUN AND MAG SN/ 2225B, SIX 380 ROUNDS. OWNER: J. GONZALEZ |
12/27/2013 | 102827-13 | 1 - 7 | FHPG13OFF053968. OWNER: F.J. WINIAUSKI - BERETTA NANO 9MM,S&W .380, 3 MAGAZINES, BLACK CASE AND HOLSTER,BLUE GUNCASE, 33 9MM ROUNDS, SIX 380 ROUNDS |
12/27/2013 | 102762-13 | 2 | OWNER JASON LAMBERT - GARAGEDOOR OPENER |
12/26/2013 | 1503-13 | 1 | GOLF CLUB OWNED BY ROBERT BRANDON |
12/26/2013 | 58980-12 | 1C | OWNER PRABHA HARRIPAUL - WII GAMING SYSTEM |
12/26/2013 | 49566-13 | 1-4 | OWNER JULIE PRATT. LEATHERMAN TOOL, YELLOW FLASHLIGHT,RED KNIFE AND CAMO BINOCULARS |
12/23/2013 | 101677-13 | 3 | WALLET OWNED BY NIKITA KHABAROV |
12/20/2013 | 100700-13 | 3 | KEYCHAIN WITH SINGLE KEY,A SKULL AND A BLUE CYLINDRICAL CONTAINER,OWNER ANDREW PATRICK |
12/3/2013 | 93396-13 | 1 | BLK KELTEC P32 HANDGUN AND MAGAZINE,OWNER IS C. CESCHI |
12/2/2013 | 93872-13 | 1 | WHITE HUFFY BICYCLE,WOMAN'S BEACHCRUISER, TEAL WHEELS AND TRIM, WITH TAPED ON FLASHFLIGHT. OWNER JOHN STUBBS |
12/2/2013 | 93462-13 | 1 | RAYMOND GLASS'S BICYCLE: NO SEAT, FEMALE/UNISEX SYLE 10 SPD SPRAY PAINTED BLACK APPEARS TO BE BLUE AND ORANGE OR COPPER COLOR UNDERNEATH, POOR CONDITION |
11/12/2013 | 87092-13 | 1, 2 | OWNER IS W. EVANS : SMITH AND WESSON .38 REVOLVER STAINLESS STEEL, WOODEN HANDLE. 4 LIVE ROUNDS AMMO AND 1 SPENT CARTRIDGE |
4/29/2012 | 29606-12 | 1 | PIETRO BERETTA 32 CAL HANDGUN |
4/29/2012 | 29606-12 | 2 | MAGAZINE |
10/13/2011 | 65792-11 | 1B | LEATHERMAN TOOL |
10/3/2011 | 63530-11 | LAB 6 | JENNINGS MOD/48 CAL/380 |
10/3/2011 | 63530-11 | LAB 5 | TAURUS MOD/PT111 CAL/9MM |
Found Property | |||
Date | Case No. | Item No. | Description |
7/18/2014 | 64313-14 | PKG 1 | Powerline Power Inverter |
7/15/2014 | 62783-14 | PKG 1 | Green Medium size purse |
7/15/2014 | 62783-14 | PKG 2 | Black Medium size purse |
7/11/2014 | 61868-14 | Item 1 | Visa Debit card. Jared Good, Owner |
7/11/2014 | 61868-14 | Item 2 | Visa Debit card #2. Jared Good, Owner |
7/11/2014 | 61868-14 | Item 3 | Mastercard debit "Google Wallet". Jared Good, Owner |
7/11/2014 | 61868-14 | Item 4 | Kohl's Merchandise credit card. Jared Good, Owner |
7/11/2014 | 61868-14 | Item 5 | Receipt from O'Reilly Auto Parts. Jared Good, Owner |
7/11/2014 | 61868-14 | Item 6 | Wallet (white in color). Jared Good, Owner |
7/2/2014 | 59299-14 | PKG 1 | Smith & Wesson 9MM semi-automatic pistol, serial #RAZ7788 w/magazine (no rounds) |
6/30/2014 | 58659-14 | PKG 1 | Roadmaster men's mountain bicycle, black seat/black handlebars. The bike was black and red, but it was repainted silver with black front and rear forks. |
6/30/2014 | 58047-14 | PKG 1 | five button Volvo key |
6/27/2014 | 57759-14 | PKG 1 | FL Tag 505NHW Decal 18625866 |
6/18/2014 | 54850-14 | PKG 2 | Mongoose Crush, Blue/Black w/front pegs |
6/18/2014 | 54850-14 | PKG 1 | Red shirt |
6/18/2014 | 54850-14 | PKG 1 | Yellow bag with sunglasses and a comb |
6/16/2014 | 53635-14 | PKG 2 | FL Driver's License |
6/16/2014 | 53635-14 | PKG 1 | Brown Purse |
6/2/2014 | 49312-14 | 1 | Found Tommy Hilfiger wallet, black - L. Laremchuk |
1/24/2014 | 6334-14 | 1 | FOUND SAMSUNG CELLPHONE |
1/16/2014 | 4470-14 | 1,2 | FOUND DAISY BUCK BB GUN RIFLE MODEL 105B, BLACK BARREL,BROWN STOCK. ONE BLACK RAWLINGS BIG STICK BASEBALL BAT |
1/13/2014 | 3756-14 | 1 | BLUE ASUS NOTEBOOK/LAPTOP SN/ DAN0CX822803440 |
1/13/2014 | 3098-14 | 1 | BERETTA 3032 TOMCAT .32CAL AUTO PISTOL, MAGAZINE. 8 ROUNDS |
1/6/2014 | 1278-14 | 1,2 | SENTRY SAFE GRAY AND BLACK IN COLOR, ABOUT APPROX 14 IN X 16IN X 7IN. PKG 2 - PULSAR WATCH SN/143762,SILVER KEY,DUAL BAND RING,DOG COLLER, GOLF INSIGNIA MONEY CLIP |
1/6/2014 | 890-14 | 1,2 | OWNER: J ATWOOD III: S&W MOD SW40VE .40 CAL HANDGUN, 2 MAGAZINE WITH AMMO, BLACK UNCLE MIKE'S HOLSTER |
1/3/2014 | 460-14 | 1 - 4 | EMERSON DVD/VCR PLAYER, FINEPIX DIGITAL CAMERA, EMPTY VIDEOGAME CASES,VIDEOGAMES:HIDDEN MYSTERIES,MICROSOFT RETURN OF ARCADE GAMES,ROBOTECH INVASION,LORD OF RINGS,DVD-INDIANA JONES CRYSTAL SKULL,NASCAR 2005,AMAZING ADVENTURES,SILVER SUNGLASSES |
12/17/2013 | 99385-13 | 1 | MEDIUM BLUE ROADMASTER MT FURY UNISEX BICYCLE,LT BLUE TRIM,BLACK SEAT,SN/ F03090016753 |
12/6/2013 | 95603-13 | 4 | LG CELLPHONE AND TMOBILE CELLPHONE |
12/2/2013 | 94319-13 | 1 | DARK BLUE ROSS MEN'S 10SPD BICYCLE, BLACK HANDLEBARS,SEAT AND BLUE AND BLACK GRIPS,UNABLE TO LOCATE SER # |
12/2/2013 | 93407-13 | 1, 2 | FOUND WALLET, ID, SS CARD, STORE CARDS AND KEYS, BELONGING TO JEANNETTE ROSS |
11/20/2013 | 90156-13 | 1 | FOUND BABY TREND BRAND BABY STROLLER, BLACK AND GRAY IN COLOR |
11/18/2013 | 88545-13 | 1A,2A,3A | 1A - PURSE OWNED BY NIKEGE ROBERTS, 1B - PURSE OWNED BY JANET SOWARDS. 1C - PINK CLOTH PURSE OWNED BY ANGELA ELLIOTT |
11/9/2013 | 86156-13 | 1 | RED/SLV NEXT BIKE |
11/12/2013 | 86281-13 | 1 | FOUND BICYCLE- 20" BOYS ORANGE STUNT/DIRT BICYCLE MONGOOSE, STUNT PEGS FRONT AND REAR, BLK SEAT,PURPLE PAINT ON REAR RIM |