FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — Flagler County deputies arrested a 20-year-old Ponte Vedra man accused of stealing a $6,000 necklace from a Kay Jewelers.
Deputies said Dominic Conte walked into the Palm Coast location before 7 p.m. on Sunday and asked a worker to see an IOK Cuban link necklace. Shortly after he was handed the necklace, deputies said he ran out of the store.
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A store employee told deputies attempted to follow Conte out the door, but lost sight of him.
After the employee called 911, deputies said they found Conte in the parking lot of the Flagler Palm Coast High School gymnasium. Deputies said when Conte spotted the deputy, he attempted to escape. Deputies said they caught up with him near the school cafeteria.
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Deputies said they searched Conte and found the missing necklace with the price tag still attached.
Investigators said Conte parked his car near the Flagler County Airport hangars and walked to Kay Jewelers with the intention of stealing this particular necklace, which he had researched in advance.
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Investigators said Conte told them he was from Jacksonville and the Palm Coast Kay Jewelers was his intended target due to fewer customers and the location being open later than others.
“This thief thought he would come into our community thinking one of our businesses would be an easy target,” FCSO Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement. “However, the quick thinking of the employees and our deputies made this crook an easy catch.”
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Conte faces charges of grand theft over $5,000, trespassing on school grounds and resisting an officer without violence. He is being held on $6,500 bond.
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