A determined Villager has tracked down his stolen golf clubs and his dogged detective work in the case enabled police to arrest a suspect.
Paul Guarneri of the Village of Rio Grande this past November had been inside the Villages Golf Cars in the La Plaza Grande shopping center in Spanish Springs. When he emerged from the store, he discovered his golf bag and clubs had been removed from his golf cart.
When Guarneri recently heard about the “Pillowcase Burglars” and that they had sold items on craigslist, he became curious. (You can read more about the Pillowcase Burglars HERE.) He went online and found his golf clubs listed on craigslist in the Orlando area. The item had been posted on April 22, according to an incident report from the Lady Lake Police Department. The golf clubs were tracked to La Familia Pawn and Jewelry in Orlando.
Guarneri shared the information with police and an arrest warrant was obtained this week for Nicholas Ruotolo, 26, of Leesburg. He apparently pawned the golf clubs within hours of stealing them.
Guarneri went to the pawn shop and reclaimed his golf clubs. He had to pay for the clubs to get them back from the pawn shop.
“It is terrible that people feel they need to steal for drugs, or food or whatever,” Guarneri said.
