Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Authorities have apprehended 61-year-old Jack Caverly Mason II on several counts of retail theft, including breaking a recently enacted law that elevates the crime to a felony if multiple locations are targeted within a 48-hour timeframe. Mason claims that his drug-induced memory loss has left him unable to recall the incidents.

According to reports, on December 9, Mason visited the Home Depot located on NW 13th Street. He allegedly filled a shopping cart with a variety of items, including several Dewalt power tools, and exited through the main entrance without attempting to pay. Although the store could not provide a comprehensive list of stolen goods, two identified items were valued at $428, with the total loss potentially reaching between $400 and $1,000 more.

Mason was seen departing in a gray Mazda, and a vigilant employee noted the license plate number, leading to his identification. A detective from the Gainesville Police Department (GPD) further recognized Mason through surveillance footage, despite his efforts to conceal his identity with a COVID mask, with assistance from an Alachua County Sheriff’s Office detective familiar with Mason.

The following day, December 10, Mason allegedly repeated his actions at a Home Depot near Tower Road. He was said to have selected several items, placed them into a cart, and left without paying. An employee confirmed the theft of two DeWalt power tools worth $548 and a $14.98 bottle of Pine Sol. While additional items were reportedly taken, they remained unidentified, preventing the theft from reaching the $750 threshold required for grand theft charges.

Once again, Mason was seen leaving the scene in a gray Mazda.

On December 14, the gray Mazda was found at the northeast Walmart (1800 NE 12th Avenue), and Mason was reportedly found in the driver’s seat of the car, wearing some of the same clothes seen in the surveillance videos of the two theft incidents. A search incident to arrest reportedly produced two pipes with drug residue.

After he was arrested, Mason was transported to GPD Headquarters for questioning, and post Miranda, he reportedly said he had been “relapsing on drugs real bad lately” and did not remember any of the alleged thefts. When he was shown surveillance video from the two Home Depot incidents, he reportedly said the items might be purchases for his clients, since he is a carpenter. However, the detective reported that surveillance videos clearly showed that Mason pushed the carts out of the store without paying; when this was pointed out, Mason reportedly claimed he had drug-induced amnesia and couldn’t remember the incidents.

Mason has been charged with committing retail thefts from more than one location in a 48-hour period, engaging in a scheme to defraud, two counts of petit theft, and possession of drug paraphernalia. He has six misdemeanor convictions (non-violent), and Judge Jonathan Ramsey set bail at $35,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.