A burglary suspect was apprehended after allegedly triggering an alarm at a local golf cart dealership.
Deputies responded to an alarm going off at Village Discount Golf Car, located at 16330 S U.S. Hwy. 441, Summerfield, around 1:15 a.m. Wednesday, according to an arrest report from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. The alarm was later found to have been triggered by 37-year-old Derek David Jackson.
When deputies arrived at the scene, they began walking the outer perimeter fence that was topped with barbed wire. One of the deputies spotted Jackson walking around inside the fenced area toward the south end of the property. The deputy briefly lost sight of him as he rounded the fence, but less than a minute later, he saw Jackson frantically riding a bicycle away from the business, the report said.
Another deputy who was coming into the area observed Jackson riding across SE Hwy. 42, immediately south of the golf cart dealership. At the same time, the deputy who initially spotted him came into the area in his own patrol vehicle. They both subsequently stopped him, the report said.
Jackson denied going onto the property and stated he was only biking past it while coming back from a friend’s house. However, surveillance footage showed him circling outside the fence on his bicycle at 12:40 a.m. He then stashed his bicycle in thick foliage and walked toward the dealership’s fence, where the video cut out, the report said.
He later admitted that he did go to the fence of the property but only because he heard the alarm. He saw golf cart lights on and wanted to investigate. But this contradicted the timeline, as he stashed his bicycle at 12:40 a.m., and the alarm did not go off until 1:12 a.m., the report said.
Jackson was arrested and charged with burglary. He was transported to Marion County Jail to be held without bond.
He has been arrested several times this year, including in September for using a motorcycle without a license, in July for driving with a license suspended for DUI and in April for trespassing at Walmart. He was also arrested in 2023 for THC oil and a vaping device found during a traffic stop at Wawa.