An air conditioning repairman was arrested with a gun stolen from a truck at Margarita Republic in The Villages.
The Smith & Wesson 40-caliber pistol had been stolen from a white 2018 GMC Acadia SUV which had been parked this past Friday night in the parking lot behind Margarita Republic at Spanish Springs Town Square, according to an arrest report from the Lady Lake Police Department. The gun’s owner did not notice it was missing until he returned home.
Community Watch was able to provide video footage which showed a 2019 Ford box truck with air conditioning logos bearing the name “Hughes” in the parking lot that night. Someone got out of the AC repair truck and into the GMC Acadia, before driving out of the parking lot in the AC repair truck.
The same AC repair truck was spotted by a Lady Lake police officer at 8:38 p.m. Sunday at Wawa at U.S. Hwy. 27/441 and County Road 466. The driver, 54-year-old Lonnie Hughes of Ocala, had the stolen gun in his truck, tucked under the arm rest. Hughes also had multiple boxes of ammunition, with a receipt in his name. A criminal history check revealed he was convicted in 1991 in Marion County on a charge of burglary.
He was arrested on charges including grand theft of a firearm and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The New York native was booked at the Lake County Jail and released after posting $39,000 bond.
