COLUMBIA COUNTY, Fla. – The Columbia County Sheriff's Office said it has recovered a large amount of stolen property taken in two separate burglaries that happened over the weekend.
The investigation began Monday morning when deputies were called to Westside Elementary School to investigate a burglary, deputies said.
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During the previous weekend, deputies said someone broke into the school and stole 21 laptops and related gear.
Deputies said a burglary also happened at Mt. Caramel Baptist Church near the school during that timeframe.
The Sheriff's Office said a deputy who took the initial report was scanning the Police Department's radio channel and heard on their radio that Lake City police had stopped a car with several laptops in the vehicle.
The deputy responded to the traffic stop and identified the laptops as the ones taken in the burglary of the school. Detectives were called to the scene and continued the investigation.
Deputies said a teenager and a parent were inside the vehicle. The teen, at the prompting of the parent, admitted to involvement in the burglaries. The teen and two other teenager suspects were not identified by deputies due to the investigation being active and pending arrests.
All of the property from the two burglaries has been recovered, including the 21 laptops valued at more than $10,000, according to the Sheriff's Office.