Convicted sexual predator back in custody after cutting off GPS ankle monitor: HCSO

BROOKSVILLE, Fla. - A convicted sexual predator in Hernando County is back behind bars for cutting off his ankle monitor, just weeks after his conditional release from prison.

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Timeline:

According to the Hernando County Sheriff's Office, on Nov. 1, Brian Dreschel, 53, was placed on a conditional release from prison after serving a 25-year sentence for a 2001 sexual battery conviction. 

Courtesy: Hernando County Sheriff's Office

On Nov. 20, HCSO detectives were alerted by the Florida Department of Corrections that a part of Dreschel's court-ordered GPS ankle monitor had been removed.

Deputies searched a wooded area off South Broad Street in Brooksville, where they found the missing part of the device on the ground at its last pinged location.

Dreschel was located and arrested shortly after the incident had been initially reported, HCSO said.

The investigation revealed that Dreschel had been using a new cell phone for several days, without properly reporting it to authorities, according to Florida Statute 775.21.

What's next:

Dreschel faces charges of tampering with an electronic monitoring device and failure to report a phone number change. He is being held without bond at the Hernando County Detention Center.

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