Case Against Kerekes Sign Bandit Dismissed
Claims That the Thief Was a Political Operative Unsubstantiated
In 2022, the Clay County Beacon reported on a wave of thefts and vandalism to political candidates throughout Clay County. Former board members Tina Bullock and Janice Kerekes used Apple AirTags and trail cameras to solve the vandalism mystery.
Enlisting the help of local for-profit news agency News4Jax, the candidates took to the airwaves to weave a tale of vandalism and theft, hinting that their political opponents were connected to the incidents.
Eventually, the technology deployed by Kerekes and Bullock resulted in a successful arrest after a sign was stolen in the Keystone Heights area. The Clay County Sheriff’s Office tracked down and arrested Steven Fitzgerald. The alleged culprit was charged with petty theft and trespassing.
A trail camera near the stolen signs caught an image of Fitzgerald with the sign in hand, and data from the Apple AirTag on the sign led police right to the alleged culprit.
Given the clear evidence and publicity surrounding the case, you might assume this would be a slam-dunk conviction. If so, you’d be wrong, as just a few months later, in December of 2022, the case was closed with an order of “Nolle prosequi Code 4,” or as the lawyers say, it was “nol prossed.”
In layman’s terms, the state prosecutor handling the case decided not to pursue the charges. The charges are dropped. Should further evidence be found, the defendant could be recharged later, but in this instance, that is unlikely. It is not clear in the court documents why the case was abandoned.
We do know that despite the public spectacle from the former board members, no evidence has been found to link any candidate or politician to the theft and vandalism of Kerekes and Bullock signs last year.
Since their defeat last year, Kerekes and Bullock have largely disappeared from the county's political scene. But 2024 is an election year, and soon, political signs will start popping up again. Hopefully, this election season will spare us the drama and wasted tax dollars of the Sign Heist of ’22.