18-year-old arrested for stealing car and hitting deer

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Cameron William Ansel, 18, was arrested yesterday for allegedly stealing a car and then damaging it by hitting a deer.

The victim told a responding Gainesville Police Department that she had accidentally left the keys inside the vehicle when she parked it in Bridgelight; a witness reportedly saw Ansel driving the car in the area and followed the car into Phoenix, where she saw Ansel and another person get out of the car and walk into an apartment.

Post Miranda, Ansel initially denied driving the vehicle, but he later reportedly admitted that he walked up to the car, found it unlocked, got in, found the keys inside the car, and took it.

The other person who had gotten out of the car reportedly denied any knowledge that the car was stolen.

The officer reported that the vehicle had front-end damage, and Ansel reportedly said the damage occurred when he hit a deer while driving to the city of Alachua.

The officer reported that Ansel has an active warrant out of Alachua County for burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, but that case is not yet on the court website, and he has not been booked on that charge.

Ansel has been charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle and felony property damage. Judge Gloria Walker set bail at $15,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.