YULEE, Fla. – A Fernandina Beach man accused of stealing an estimated $20,000 worth of weapons from a home and a storage unit was arrested last week, the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday.
Sometime between Nov. 23 and 28, deputies said, a burglary happened in a unit at Cube Smart Storage on South 8th Street in Fernandina Beach, during which several firearms were stolen.
Thursday, Rocky Blake Nash, 31, was arrested on charges of armed burglary, grand theft and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
"He’s been arrested before. We’re familiar with him. But we don’t know all that he’s done but certainly he’s been arrested for some other things in the past," Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper said Wednesday.
Deputies said Nash also confessed to a September burglary of a Yulee home on Airport Lane, where he stole multiple guns and knives.
Leeper said they believe Nash entered the storage unit through the ceiling and entered the Yulee home through a pet door.
"The residence was broken into, appeared to have gone through a pet door in the back. The guns were in a safe with a gun lock (in a) storage area that was hidden. The individual broke into those gun boxes, stole 21 guns there," Leeper said.
During the investigation, detectives recovered nine stolen firearms, two swords and one knife, all worth an estimated $20,000.
"Certainly someone steals a gun, (it can) get into the wrong hands, and commit crimes, and could kill other people. So it's very important to make sure your guns are locked, which they were in this case. But, unfortunately, the house and storage unit were broken into in this case," Leeper said.
Deputies said they are still looking for the remaining stolen weapons that have not been recovered. Investigators said they suspect Nash has already sold some of them. Anyone with information is asked to anonymously call Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.