Grace McAlister
Reporter1@riverbendnews.org
On Tuesday, Oct. 4, the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO) received several calls involving a blue Jeep with no tag being driven by a white male. A report was taken in reference to a white male entering the home of Victim 1, located on 110th Street in Live Oak. Victim 1 was asleep when a white male entered his home. The report states that he was awakened by the sound of his door opening and closing, and he saw a white male standing in his house. Victim 1 reported the white male had stripped off all of his clothes and left completely nude, got into a blue four-door Jeep and left the area.
Later that same day, the SCSO received a call in reference to a burglary that occurred at on 64th Street in Live Oak. Deputy Bradley Griffin was dispatched to this address and, upon arrival, made contact with Victim 2. According to the SCSO report, Victim 2 stated he left for work in the early morning hours on Oct. 4, and when he returned home, he found that his house had been broken into. He states that he found the inside of his house damaged and multiple personal items were missing. The individual that entered the house damaged the windows, furniture and window air conditioning units. Various personal belongings were also missing, including multiple articles of clothing, jewelry, a television, a DVD player and legal documents, including his passports, car title and sale contract to the home. Also missing from the residence was the key to the victim’s 2007 Ford pickup truck.
The report states that a neighbor saw a blue SUV at Victim 2’s residence at approximately 3 p.m. on Oct. 4, but didn’t pay it any attention at the time and did not see any of the occupants with the vehicle.
Then, on Wednesday, Oct. 5, SCSO made contact with a woman who stated that on Tuesday, Oct. 4,
she sold her blue 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee to a white male named Terry Joseph Lemming for $800. She signed the title for the Jeep over to Lemming and took the tag off of the vehicle.
On Oct. 5, at 11 a.m., SCSO received a call for service in reference to a blue Jeep that had wrecked in the area of US Hwy 129 and CR 252 west. When Deputy Chuck Tompkins arrived on the scene, he observed where a vehicle had left
the roadway and traveled through the ditch, through the wood line, over a fence and came to rest in a hay field. The blue Jeep Grand Cherokee did not have a tag attached, and the inside was full of clothes and other items. He opened the driver’s door to obtain the vehicle's identification number (VIN). While taking a picture of the VIN, he noticed a prescription pill bottle on the driver’s floorboard area, the name on the prescription pill bottle was that of one of the burglary victims.
Officer Tompkins checked the vehicle’s VIN through Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and confirmed the vehicle to be the one the woman sold to Lemming on Tuesday, Oct. 4. During a canvas of the area, several items were found in the wooded area east of the Jeep. The items collected included: a Marlin .22 rifle with a magazine and shoulder sling, several items of clothing, two belts, several receipts and a men’s watch. Also found in the wooded area east of the Jeep was a black backpack.
The Jeep was towed to the SCSO Criminal Division to be processed. Officer Tompkins made contact with the rifle’s owner, who advised he didn’t initially realize his rifle was stolen, but he did confirm a rifle matching the description of the one found on Wednesday, Oct. 5, was stolen from his residence. He described the .22 rifle that was located in the wooded area east of the Jeep, and it was determined that the .22 rifle belonged to the victim and was taken during the burglary.
On Monday, Oct. 10, Tompkins completed a search warrant for the Jeep and it was signed by Judge Williams. On Tuesday, Oct. 11, he served the search warrant on the Jeep, with the assistance of Inv. Chris Frost and Inv. Jacob Williamson. Present during the search of the 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee was one of the burglary victims. Inv. Williamson took photographs of the vehicle and possible blood stains that were observed on the outside driver's door under the door handle and on the inside of the driver's side rear door panel. A sample of these possible blood stains was collected to be sent to the crime lab. Inv. Williamson also took photographs of the items that were in the vehicle as they were removed and shown to the victim, who would state “yes’’ if the item belonged to him or “no’’ if the item did not. During this search warrant, the victim identified every item of clothing, prescription medication, photographs and legal paperwork as belonging to him. There was also a black backpack that the victim stated did not belong to him.
The backpack was opened, and inside was paperwork that belonged to one of the victims, which included his wife's ID card, passports and a red ledger with Spanish writing on the pages. Also found in the backpack was a clear plastic baggie with a white crystalline substance, which appeared to be methamphetamine. The white crystalline substance was field tested and tested positive as methamphetamine. There was some paperwork found inside the black backpack that belonged to Lemming, including the Jeep’s title, which had been signed by the seller and Terry Lemming. This paperwork was collected as evidence. The items that belonged to the victims were turned over to them.
The SCSO report states Lemming is a convicted felon with approximately eight felony convictions showing in his criminal history.
On Sunday, Oct. 27, Lemming was arrested and charged with one count of armed burglary, one count of grand theft of a firearm, one count of possession of a controlled substance, one count of possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, one count of grand theft and one count of property damage - criminal mischief.