Florida burglary suspect batters deputy after trying to hide from law enforcement in playground slide: FCSO
PALM COAST, Fla. - A suspected burglar wasn’t very good at playing hide-and-seek from deputies on a Florida playground.
Deputies in Flagler County say they went to the Casa Montessori School in Palm Coast last Friday after receiving reports of a suspicious person trying to open doors to several vehicles and throwing items over the fence of a playground.
According to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, the suspect, later identified as 45-year-old Julie Martellucci, ignored commands to get off the playground and tried to hide from deputies in a corkscrew tube slide.
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After being taken from the slide, FCSO says Martellucci used her elbow to hit a deputy in the face while he tried to restrain her.
Julie Martellucci mugshot courtesy of the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
Investigators say she threw several playground playsets over the fence, tipped over others, got into a shed on the property, and tried to get inside the school through several windows.
In bodycam video of her arrest, Martellucci can be heard telling deputies that the business was closed, and she was behind it with her frog because she is a ‘nature nut’.
"This would-be thief reached a new low in her attempt to steal from local businesses," said Sheriff Rick Staly. "She left a mess on a children’s playground and slid her way into the Green Roof Inn (the name Staly has given the jail). I also thank the concerned citizens that called in reporting the suspicious behavior that led to her arrest. Finally, if you batter a Deputy Sheriff, I promise you a trip to the Green Roof Inn."
Martellucci was arrested on two counts of burglary, resisting arrest with violence, and battery on a law enforcement officer.