WAKULLA COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) - A Tallahassee man is facing charges for a string of gun thefts stretching across multiple Big Bend counties.
The Wakulla County Sheriff's Office says Edward James Hamilton Jr. has been charged with armed burglary, criminal mischief, grand theft of firearms, and grand theft.
Deputies say that on Aug. 16, a Crawfordville resident reported that his home had been broken into. The homeowner reported that multiple firearms, Air Jordan shoes, a flat screen television, two compound bows, various rounds of ammunition, gun magazines, and other items had been stolen from the residence.
Investigators say the victim's game camera recorded the break in suspect leaving the home in a blue Hyundai around 8:42 a.m. Eventually deputies determined the car was registered to a Tallahassee resident.
The same day detectives from WCSO, the Leon County Sheriff's Office, and the Tallahassee Police Department spoke to the owner of the Hyundai who said he had loaned the car to 'EJ,' later identified as Edward James Hamilton Jr.
Later that night, investigators searched Hamilton's apartment in Tallahassee and found property from the Crawfordville burglary as well as Hamilton's wallet containing his ID.
The blue Hyundai was towed to the WSCO impound yard so it could be searched and get its tires removed to compare them to the casting of the tire impressions at the burglary scene.
On Tuesday, Hamilton was arrested by the Gadsden County Sheriff's Office after he was found in possession of a gun reported stolen from a Leon County burglary. He was booked into the Gadsden County Jail.
WCSO detectives were able to obtain arrest warrants for Hamilton and interviewed him at the jail in Gadsden County. During the interview, deputies say he admitted to breaking into the Crawfordville home.
Due to Hamilton being booked into the Gadsden County Jail, a hold was placed on him to face the charges in Wakulla County.
