Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Andre Lejuan Sessions, 37, was arrested yesterday after police said he stole landscaping equipment from two private companies and the City of Gainesville, then pawned some of the items.
The first reported incident happened around 8:45 a.m. on July 20 at Winn Dixie Plaza, 1459 NW 23rd Avenue. According to police, a landscaping crew had parked its truck and trailer at the plaza while the workers were operating some distance away, leaving the trailer’s rear door open.
An anonymous witness told authorities that a gray Ford Focus pulled up and a man got out, entered the trailer, and took a leaf blower and two weed whackers. The equipment was valued at about $850. Investigators also reportedly reviewed security footage that captured the theft.
Police said the Focus’s tag traced back to a vehicle registered to Sessions’s wife. The investigating officer also reported that Sessions had previously worked as a landscaper for the City of Gainesville but was fired after being caught stealing lawn equipment.
On July 21, Sessions allegedly pawned the leaf blower, submitting his thumbprint and signing a statement asserting that he was the sole and rightful owner of the property. Police said the serial number matched records from the first victim.
A second theft was reported at about 9 a.m. on July 21, when another landscaping crew parked at the Goodwill at 1223 NW 23rd Avenue while working at the neighboring plaza. As in the earlier case, the trailer’s rear door was left open. Goodwill surveillance video reportedly shows a gray Focus arriving before a man gets out, checks the empty truck bed, enters the trailer, and leaves with a leaf blower valued at $600.
Investigators said Sessions pawned that blower in Starke on July 27, again providing his thumbprint and declaring himself the sole and rightful owner. The serial number reportedly matched records from the second victim.
At about 9 a.m. on July 29, a City of Gainesville landscaper parked a City truck and trailer at City Hall and began mowing the grass. Video at City Hall captured a gray Focus driving up; a man gets out and steals an edger and two blowers from the trailer, valued at $1,250.
The same day, Sessions allegedly pawned the edger, providing his thumbprint and pledging that he was the sole and rightful owner of the property. The serial number matched the City’s records.
On August 1, Sessions was arrested in Bradford County for theft, dealing in stolen property, and providing false information in a pawn transaction.
Sessions’s address is listed as Hawthorne, but he told Court Services that he lives in Hampton and works for a lawn service company. He has been charged with three counts of dealing in stolen property, three counts of burglary of an unoccupied vehicle, three counts of providing false information in a pawn transaction, two counts of grand theft, and one count of petit theft; he is also facing a Notice to Appear for battery in Alachua County and is on pre-trial release in Bradford County on the charges listed above. He has served one state prison sentence and was released in 2013. Judge Joy Danne set bail at $285,000.
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.
