19-year-old Newberry man charged with stealing firearms from vehicle in September 2024

Staff report

NEWBERRY, Fla. – Jacques Demetrius Harris, 19, who was previously arrested for stealing one of the four firearms taken from a vehicle in Newberry in September 2024, has now been charged with burglary and the theft of two more guns from the same incident.

On September 23, 2024, four firearms were reported stolen in Newberry: a Diamondback 9mm handgun, a Glock 19 handgun, a Canik Elite Combat 9mm handgun with a gold barrel, and a CZ Scorpion 9mm pistol with a pistol brace.

On November 4, 2024, Harris was arrested after a traffic stop when a different stolen firearm, a Taurus pistol that had been reported stolen on September 25, was reportedly found in his vehicle. The arresting deputy also noted that Harris was wearing all black clothing, including a black ski mask. Harris was released the next day after posting $77,000 bail, and formal charges of grand theft of a firearm, unlawful concealed carry of a firearm, possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia were filed in January.

On March 4, 2025, Harris was arrested again after a deputy reported finding marijuana and a stolen gun in Harris’s car during a traffic stop; the gun was the Glock 19 that had been reported stolen on September 23, 2024. Bail was initially set at $157,000, but when formal charges were not filed within 40 days, Judge Denise Ferrero ordered him released on his own recognizance on April 17. Although Harris’s bond in the November case was revoked after his March arrest, Judge Aymer “Buck” Curtin ordered him released on his own recognizance in that case, too, on April 23.

The two gun thefts (the Taurus and the four other guns) were both in late September 2024 and were from locations near each other in Newberry.

An Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy obtained a search warrant for the cell phones belonging to the three defendants in the March case, and the deputy reported finding multiple images of Harris with guns that matched the description of two of the stolen guns.

One set of photos, taken on September 30, 2024, reportedly shows three people holding firearms, and one of the images has metadata with a geolocation corresponding to Harris’s residence. One photo reportedly shows Harris holding a CZ Scorpion pistol with a brace; the deputy noted that because the Glock 19 from the same burglary was previously recovered from Harris, this is believed to be the stolen Scorpion pistol from the September 23 burglary.

Another image reportedly shows Harris holding a Canik TP9 Elite Combat Executive with a gold barrel, which also matches the description of one of the guns stolen on September 23. A still image from a video from Harris’s phone reportedly clearly shows the serial number of one of the stolen guns.

Harris has been charged with burglary of a vehicle and two counts of grand theft of a firearm. He has no criminal convictions but is on pre-trial release in two other cases; since this incident pre-dated the other two arrests, this arrest does not violate his pre-trial release conditions in the other cases. Judge Meshon Rawls set bail at $250,000.

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.