Homeowner chases down teen suspected of burglary

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Kevin Moore of Brooksville says he’s sick and tired of the car break-ins around his neighborhood.

“[I] don’t want someone taking something I work hard for,” Moore said.

Thursday morning he noticed a couple of teens rummaging through his vehicle. He decided to take matters into his own hands. 

“When I first came out the door they flashed a flashlight in my face. At that time I was concerned. Hopefully nothings attached to it, but [I] kept going!” he said.

He chased one of them down the street. But the two 17-year-olds appeared to have gotten away. 

Rather than leave it alone, Moore says he got in his car and eventually found one of the kids on his bike.

“I get out of the car and I wasn’t very nice to him. There's two ways we can go about it. You can come with me the nice way or I can force you,” he recalls telling the teen.

The boy complied.

Deputies arrested him and eventually busted his accomplice too.

It turns out,  the two may be responsible for several recent burglaries in that same area, according to the sheriff's office.

“This worked out well and we're very thankful for that but we wouldn’t recommend anyone go after anybody going thru their car,” said Hernando County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Denise Moloney.

Nevertheless, deputies are going through lots of stolen property seized from the boys, including a handgun, thanks to Moore. He says he’d do it all over again.

“I hope they learn their lesson but we're all getting tired of it,” he told FOX 13.