BUNNELL, Fla. — A Florida man is accused of breaking into a gas station and stealing some items, then leaving his debit card on the counter, authorities said.
Lantz Christian Kurtz, 21, of Cocoa Beach, was arrested Sunday and charged with armed burglary and petit theft, according to Flagler County Sheriff’s Office online booking records.
According to a news release from the sheriff’s office, deputies responded to a commercial alarm that was tripped at a gas station in Palm Coast on Sunday morning.
Upon their arrival, deputies observed that the front door of the gas station was unlocked, the sheriff’s office said. Deputies located a debit card on the counter near the register showing the name of “Lantz Kurtz,” WFTV reported.
Investigators said surveillance video showed a man entering the back of the store, taking several items, then unlocking the front door and leaving, according to the television station. Deputies said they recognized the man as Kurtz from a previous vehicle fire that occurred near the gas station several hours later, the news release stated.
According to the sheriff’s office, Kurtz admitted breaking into the gas station and said he left his debit card at the counter so he could return to the business and pay for the items later.
“He must have really wanted those items to break into a closed convenience store to get them,” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement. “Leaving a debit card behind does not absolve you from theft or committing a burglary.”
Kurtz was booked into the Flagler County Jail but was released nearly 10 hours later after posting $10,000 bail, online records show.