Spring Hill theft convict arrested again
SPRING HILL –
A man who had been put in jail four times in less than 18 months found himself behind bars for a fifth time after deputies arrested him on suspicion of stealing lawn maintenance equipment.
Stephen Daniel Curry, 25, is accused of riding around with his accomplice, Nicole Bradshaw, 25, searching for landscaping vehicles, stealing whatever he could without being seen and speeding away.
Bradshaw would drive and Curry would ride with her and scan the neighborhoods for pickups with lawn tools in the back, according to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office.
That was how Curry stole the items most times, but on at least six occasions, he burglarized occupied homes to steal tools, deputies said.
Curry would sell the stolen items as quickly as he could, according to an arrest report.
Detectives said they linked Curry to the crimes after a neighbor of one of the victims provided them with a detailed description of a suspicious vehicle that was seen parked near the burglarized house.
The vehicle description was spread across the sheriff’s office and one of the deputies recognized it. He had recent dealings with both Curry and Bradshaw and linked the vehicle to them, detectives said.
The lead investigators took that information, piled up a case against Curry and Bradshaw, recovered thousands of dollars worth of equipment and returned them to their rightful owners, according to the sheriff’s office.
“It is exciting to see our citizens work together with our agency to achieve a successful outcome,” said Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis. “Without the assistance from the community, along with the hard work of my staff, these criminals would likely still be committing crimes against our citizens.”
Curry was charged with seven counts of dealing in stolen property, six counts of occupied residential burglary, four counts of grand theft and three counts of burglary.
Bradshaw was charged with one count of occupied residential burglary.
A third suspect, Clay Hulsey, was charged with one count each of dealing in stolen property and violation of probation.
Deputies said Hulsey purchased some of the items from Curry knowing they had been stolen.
Court records show Curry has been convicted of various retail theft charges and more.
In April, he was sentenced to less than six months in jail on his latest retail theft conviction. Credited with time served, he was released in August, according to records.
He wasted little time to commit his latest series of crimes, deputies said.
Curry burglarized his first victim Aug. 12, according to the sheriff’s office.
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