DESOTO COUNTY, Fla. – A Kissimmee man was caught and arrested on Wednesday after two kidnapped 4-year-olds were found in a stolen vehicle he was driving, according to the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office.
In a release, deputies said that they’d received a report about the stolen vehicle and kidnapped children out of Henry County, though the car was later spotted along Highway 17.
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Deputies tried to pull the stolen car over, but the driver — identified as Jerome Ralph Garvin, 47 — refused to comply, instead leading deputies on a car chase, the release shows.
But while the stolen vehicle was still moving, Garvin abandoned the car with the children still inside, investigators announced.
“His attempt to evade justice failed,” the release reads. “DCSO deputies and Arcadia Police Department officers worked together to track him down and apprehend him.”
Meanwhile, deputies explained that they were able to safely rescue the children involved.
According to deputies, Garvin has an extensive criminal history, including robbery, grand theft auto, and aggravated battery.
Now, Garvin faces the following charges:
- Grand theft of a motor vehicle
- Fleeing to elude law enforcement
- Child neglect without great bodily harm
- Driving with a suspended license
- Leaving the scene of a crash involving property damage
- Resisting arrest
He is held on no bond.
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