A Center Hill man found himself behind bars recently after Marion County sheriff’s deputies spotted him driving a vehicle that had been reported stolen.
The deputies observed a black Lexus in the area of SE 36th Avenue and SE Maricamp Road that was listed as stolen out of Sumter County. They found 42-year-old Jeremy Horn behind the wheel and discovered that he did not have a valid driver’s license, a report says.
One of the deputies spotted a firearm in plain view inside the vehicle and verified that Horn was a convicted felon. He claimed he purchased the vehicle from an “unknown person” in Sumter County and admitted that the drug paraphernalia inside the car was his, the report says.
Horn was charged with grand theft auto, possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon, driving on a suspended license (habitual) and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was being held on no bond and is due in court Aug. 25 at 9 a.m. to answer to the charges.
Horn also was arrested in December 2015 on drug charges after he and a lady friend were spotted by a Sumter County sheriff’s deputy as they left the Economy Inn on State Road 44 in Wildwood. The deputy was aware that Horn did not have a valid driver’s license, a report states.
The deputy’s K-9 alerted on Horn’s vehicle, leading to the discovery of methamphetamine, scales and a spoon. A loaded .22-caliber revolver was also found in the vehicle, in addition to ammunition, a report says.