[PHOTO CREDIT: Lake County Sheriff’s Office]
[Original Publish Date: 05/18/21]
MOUNT DORA, Florida — A man whose ex-girlfriend let him stay with her for a few weeks repaid her by stealing her SUV while she thought he was in the shower, and using her debit card without permission Sunday, according to an arrest affidavit.
Shortly after 7 p.m. Lake County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a home in Mount Dora on a report of a stolen vehicle. The victim told LCSO Joaquin Ramon Medina-Rondon, 34, had been staying with her for about two weeks, and told her he was going to take a shower.
The victim thought Medina-Rondon was taking a long time in the shower and began investigating why, the affidavit states. She walked around the front of her house and noticed her 2020 Nissan Rogue was missing and her keys were gone. She went into the bathroom and found the water running and Medina-Rondon gone, possibly leaving through the bathroom window.
She told LCSO Medina-Rondon has never had permission to use her vehicle and said her purse and wallet, containing her debit card were in the SUV. She checked her account and found that her card was used for two separate withdrawals totaling $309. The victim said Medina-Rondon must have figured out her PIN. A laptop was also in the vehicle.
Early Monday morning, LCSO spotted the SUV on County 437 in the Sorrento area. They deployed stop sticks, deflating the driver’s side tires and took Medina-Rondon into custody. The victim’s purse, wallet, debit card and laptop were all found in the vehicle.
Medina-Rondon, who was already out on bond for a prior grand theft charge was arrested for grand theft of a motor vehicle, petit theft, unlawful possession of a stolen debit card and fraudulent use of a credit card. He was booked into the Lake County Jail, where he was later released on $10,000 bond.
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Our Editor-in-Chief, Marilyn M. Aciego, began writing for Lake Legal News in 2010. Born and raised in Lake County, she is a graduate of Umatilla High School and Lake-Sumter State College. She started her journalism career at LSSC, where she was editor of both student publications, The Angler and The Odyssey. Her professional career began at the Daily Commercial in 2004 where she covered cops and courts the majority of her time there until she left in 2009. Currently, along with being Editor-in-Chief of Lake Legal News, she is the Florida bureau chief for an international media organization. She has made more than two dozen appearances on live national television, including Nancy Grace and the Greta Van Susteren show, along with her appearance on Evil Twins. Contact her with breaking news, tips, and feedback by sending an e-mail to 352Tips@gmail.com. You can also contact us on our Facebook page — and make sure you “Like” and “Follow us” there. [PHOTO CREDIT: Bonnie Whicher]
