ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Deputies have arrested two people who they said are responsible for the Easter weekend robbery of an Avalon Park jewelry store that left $100,000 in damage.
Dante Felton, 18, and a 17-year-old were captured after a deputy spotted them on April 19 driving a stolen Honda Accord in Pine Hills, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Office.
A Sheriff's Office helicopter tracked the pair after they blew a tire and fled on foot. Felton and the 17-year-old tried to hide in a boat in the backyard of a home on Merriewood Drive, deputies said.
Deputies found the suspects locked in the boat cabin's bathroom, according to the arrest report.
"They had to break the door of the cabin, and these two guys were hiding in the restroom," said Kathyrn Barber, who owns the boat. "The tiny restroom of the bathroom!"
Barber said she was not surprised the teens used her boat as a hiding place.
"I've told my husband before, you know, sometimes I'm afraid when I hear helicopters circling over here, because that is a big boat sitting down there and I said, 'That's a good place for some people to hide,' and it happened," she said.
[PICTURES: Avalon Park jewelry store burglarized]
Store owner Tiffany Bayley said she discovered the thousands of dollars' worth of damage on Easter morning.
"In a matter of three minutes they could have destroyed my entire life," Bayley said. "I don't feel sorry for them at all. I don't care if they're 17. I don't care if they're 18. They need to go to jail."
It was the seventh time her store has been targeted since she opened in the Avalon Park location in 2011.
Bayley said the thieves stole a few thousand dollars' worth of merchandise, but the break-in cost her close to $100,000 in damage.
"I've been doing this for 30 years," Bayley said. "I could have lost my entire business."
When deputies handcuffed the teens, they were wearing jewelry from Bayley's store, she said, "with the price tags still on it like it was some kind of trophy. It's disgusting, it's disgusting."
The 17-year-old was booked into a juvenile detention center and Felton was booked into the Orange County Jail.