BY DAN HILDEBRAN
Telegraph Staff Writer
STARKE— A 34-year-old Starke man was sentenced to 20 months in prison for purchasing a stolen motorcycle and for stealing a trailer from the Starke Golf and Country Club.
Garrett Vincent Culverson pleaded to the November 15, 2022, offenses of dealing in stolen property, resisting an officer and contributing to the dependency of a child.
He also pleaded to the October 27, 2022, offenses of grand theft, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.
According to an arrest report, on November 15, 2022, Starke police received a report of a stolen motorcycle at the Heritage Villa Apartments across Call Street from HCA Florida Starke Emergency.
There they found the bike and verified it as stolen by its tag.
“While on scene and while other units were arriving, Culverson exited the back door of the apartment and fled on foot with (a minor) into the wooded area East of the apartment,” wrote reporting officer James Hall.
Police set up a perimeter and called in a Union Correctional Institution K-9 unit to search for the 34-year-old and the girl.
The defendant exited the woods on West Mimosa Drive, where Detective Hunter Redding detained him.
“Culverson sustained multiple scratch marks on his body resulting from running through thorn bushes,” wrote Hall. “(The minor)
sustained heavy scratch marks on her arms, legs and head resulting from the thorn bushes.”
The officer added that Culverson told him and Redding that he purchased the bike at a Gainesville Taco Bell earlier in the month.
“Culverson stated he had reason to believe the motorcycle could have been stolen due to the ignition being damaged and the price being as cheap as it was,” wrote Hall. “He also stated he was given a set of pliers and a knife from the (seller) needed to start the motorcycle. The knife and pliers were located in the woods, and Culverson admitted to tossing them while in the woods.”
The defendant added that while in the woods, the child was scared and confused about why the pair were running from the police.
“He also stated she lost her shoes, and he had to carry her on his shoulders to prevent her from becoming more scratched from the
thorns,” wrote Hall. “He continued by stating (the girl) wanted to go back and leave the woods.”
The child was taken to a hospital for treatment.
According to an October 27 arrest report, Bradford deputies were called to the Starke Golf and Country Club about a stolen trailer.
There the victim told deputies that a trailer had been attached to his pickup truck while he was playing golf. When he returned to the vehicle, the trailer was gone.
Surveillance video from a nearby residence showed the trailer being towed away by a white Ford Escape.
Deputies later stopped a Ford matching the truck in the video. The vehicle had an expired Georgia tag.
“While speaking with the driver, identified as Garrett Culverson, Garrett spontaneously uttered that he knew where the trailer was located,” wrote Detective Michael Garmon. “Garrett also gave consent to BCSO units to search the vehicle.”
Inside the Escape, deputies uncovered nine grams of methamphetamine and three syringes.
“Garrett stated that he had stolen the trailer from the golf course and taken it to a residence in the Hawthorne area in order to trade it for illegal narcotics,” added the detective.
