WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. – A Winter Springs pest control worker was arrested after deputies say he stole and pawned jewelry from a client's home.
Matthew Adam Blake, 39, was charged with eight counts of dealing in stolen property, eight counts of providing false verification of ownership to a pawn dealer and grand theft, Seminole County deputies said on Wednesday.
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Blake was also charged with possession of cocaine and possession of drug paraphernalia, which was found and turned in by his supervisor.
On Jan. 28, the victim, a Winter Springs woman, went to her jewelry box to retrieve an item and noticed numerous pieces of jewelry were missing, according to deputies.
The victim told deputies that Blake was the only person in her home over the past few months and briefly went upstairs unattended to complete part of his inspection, the Seminole County Sheriff's Office said.
"The items were placed on hold for investigators who took photographs of the jewelry. The victim was shown the photographs and positively identified 17 pieces of the pawned jewelry valued at more than $10,000," according to the news release.
The investigation revealed that Blake had pawned multiple pieces of jewelry over the last several months.
Investigators do not have any evidence at this time that would connect Blake to other thefts, SCSO said.