Dad used 6-year-old daughter as lookout to steal from Ace Hardware then ditched child to flee from police and hide in nearby Walmart, police say

A 35-year-old antheral successful Florida is accused of utilizing his 6-year-old girl to effort to bargain from a section Ace Hardware, lone to ditch the kid successful the store parking batch arsenic helium fled from a information defender who confronted him astir the theft.

Joshua Robert Spirit was taken into custody earlier this week and charged with aggregate crimes, including child abuse without large bodily harm, kid neglect without bodily harm, and resisting an serviceman without violence, records show.

According to an apprehension study obtained by Law&Crime, the incidental took spot astatine astir 4 p.m. connected Monday, Nov. 10, astatine the Ace Hardware successful the 3700 artifact of University Avenue successful Gainesville. A information defender astatine the constitution said Spirit and his girl were successful the instrumentality conception of the store erstwhile Spirit enactment immoderate merchandise "into his person" and into his daughter's bag. The 6-year-old was allegedly "watching for people" portion her begetter took the items.

The defender said helium observed Spirit walk each points of merchantability earlier exiting the store without paying for the merchandise, which retailed astatine a full of $199, per the report. He past identified himself to Spirit and attempted to halt him from leaving, but Spirit allegedly "refused to comply."

As Spirit and his girl got successful his car and attempted to leave, the defender said helium stood down the car and took a photograph of the licence plate. While helium was taking the photo, Spirit allegedly backed up the car, "tapping" the defender with his conveyance "with the intentions to get away." The defender called 911 arsenic Spirit fled the parking lot.

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An serviceman with the Gainesville Police Department soon located Spirit successful beforehand of his home. When commanded to stop, Spirit allegedly "took disconnected running," leaving his young girl "unattended by herself."

A 2nd serviceman soon spotted Spirit walking successful the 5900 artifact of NW 23rd Terrace. When Spirit heard the serviceman archer him to stop, helium allegedly "jumped implicit an 8-foot factual wall" and "concealed himself successful the adjacent Walmart parking lot."

A 3rd serviceman said they recovered Spirit "hiding nether a parked car connected the Walmart property." Police said Spirit began to ascent backmost implicit the aforesaid factual partition again, but saw that 1 of the officers pursuing him was inactive connected the different side. Instead, helium bolted into the Walmart and tried to hide. The 3rd serviceman followed him into the store and deployed his Taser earlier placing Spirit nether arrest. A bluish pouch weapon was recovered from Spirit's pocket, the study says.

Records amusement that Spirit was antecedently convicted of aggregate nonviolent felonies and was connected probation astatine the clip of his arrest. He was processed astatine the Alachua County Jail wherever a justice acceptable his enslaved astatine $45,000 connected the latest charges but ordered Spirit to beryllium held without enslaved portion his probation presumption is reviewed.

It was not instantly wide erstwhile helium was scheduled to look successful tribunal again.