Detectives for the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s office in Florida this week identified, located and arrested three individuals suspected in a rash of boat propeller thefts that occurred between Sept. 22 and Dec. 14 in the Fort Pierce, Fla., area. The suspects were wanted in connection with the theft of 61 propellers worth an estimated $73,000.
“At the time of their arrest, the suspects were attempting to sell parts from a stolen Volvo Penta outdrive to a local scrapyard,” St. Lucie County sheriff Ken Mascara said in a statement. “Sadly, what we see with most thieves is a nexus to drug use, and the value of the property stolen is sold for pennies on the dollar to fuel their drug use. In this case, the approximate value of each propeller is $1,200, and these thieves sold them for $126 on average.”
According to the sheriff’s office, detectives located eight of the 61 missing propellers as of late December. They were stolen between Sept. 22 and Dec. 14, 2022.
All three suspects hail from Fort Pierce. Richard Dale Gillispie, 39, was arrested on 20 counts of dealing in stolen property and 20 counts of providing false information to a second-hand dealer. He was booked into the St. Lucie County Jail on a $250,000 bond.
Christopher Ward Summerlin, 45, has been arrested on five counts of dealing in stolen property and five counts of providing false information to a second-hand dealer. He was booked into the St. Lucie County Jail on a $62,500 bond.
Thirty-three-year-old Michelle Stephanie Gillispie was arrested for burglary and grand theft. She was booked into the St. Lucie County Jail on a $12,500 bond.
