Man on probation arrested on multiple burglary charges and firearm thefts

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

ALACHUA COUNTY, Fla. – Teshon Areye Johnson, 24, was arrested yesterday on 13 charges after allegedly being found with a number of stolen items. He is currently homeless after being released from state prison in September; he served a 2-year sentence on theft and burglary charges out of both Alachua and Pasco Counties and is currently on probation in those cases.

An Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy responded to a call at 7:15 a.m. yesterday about a suspicious person who had been seen looking into vehicles and pulling door handles. The caller described the man and said he was carrying a women’s purse with a laptop and a pair of women’s shoes hanging out of the bag.

The deputy saw a man matching the description at the intersection of Newberry Road and Ft. Clarke Boulevard and made contact with the man, later identified as Johnson. Johnson reportedly had trouble answering questions about the items he was carrying, including stating that the shoes were his but then changing his story to say they were his girlfriend’s when it was pointed out that they wouldn’t fit him.

A witness reportedly told deputies he saw Johnson attempting to enter vehicles at the Paddock Club apartment complex, where he was seen carrying the bag. Post Miranda, Johnson reportedly said he picked up the bag from the ground next to a car while a woman was unloading her car.

A search of the bag reportedly found four firearms (one of which was later determined to be a BB gun), three pairs of shoes, a laptop, two pairs of boxing gloves, a hoodie, a pair of shorts, cash, and a wallet with several credit cards. Information from the wallet and laptop was used to identify several victims.

Johnson reportedly later admitted to stealing the guns from vehicles in several different locations in the surrounding neighborhoods.

Johnson has been charged with three counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, three counts of carrying a concealed firearm without a permit, two counts of armed burglary, one count of unarmed burglary, two counts of grand theft of a firearm, one count of grand theft, and one count of possessing a firearm during a felony.

Johnson had five active warrants for violating probation on the Alachua and Pasco burglary and theft charges. He has 17 felony convictions and a juvenile criminal history. Judge Susan Miller-Jones ordered that he be held without bond.

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.