TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) - A teen was arrested after police said he was connected to a string of armed burglaries. Police said the suspect was wearing a GPS tracking device after being released from jail, which helped put him at the scene of one of the crimes.
According to the Tallahassee Police Department, 17-year-old Octavious Smith was arrested Wednesday in connection to multiple burglaries, including a March robbery on Eugenia Street near FAMU.
According to police, a man later identified as Smith, as well as two others, knocked on the victim's door on March 6, asking if they sold marijuana. The victim reportedly told the suspect he did not and closed the door.
He continued to watch the three suspects through his peephole, which is when police said the victim saw one of the suspects pull out a full sized, semi automatic handgun out of his pocket.
The victim and his friends who were in the apartment said they were trying to get out of a window in the back bedroom when they heard a gunshot.
After hiding, the victim reportedly got his tablet, which he had left in the apartment, and used it to call police. Police said they found a bullet hole and casing in the apartment.
Police said Smith confessed to being a part of another robbery that happened on March 7 less than a quarter of a mile from the initial armed robbery.
Smith had previously been arrested for similar charges and was a part of the Leon County Pre-Trial release program, court documents showed. As a result, Smith wore a GPS monitoring device, which police said they used to place Smith at the scene of the burglary. A search warrant at Smith's house also turned up a gun that matched the description of the one found at the scene.
Smith is charged with robbery-residential home invasion with a weapon. This is in addition to previous charges including burglary of a dwelling armed with a firearm, burglary of a dwelling with a person assaulted and grand theft.
