NewsPasco County

Actions

Man tries to break into car, arrested by deputies waiting inside

Posted
and last updated

If you're going to break into a vehicle, you typically want to make sure it isn't an unmarked Sheriff's Office vehicle and that there aren't deputies inside that vehicle.

That's what happened last Wednesday in Pasco County.

The night before, several home owners caught a man on video as he tried to burglarize seven vehicles on Hawbuck Street in Trinity Oaks. However, all the doors were locked and nothing was stolen.

The next day, 49-year-old Stephen Titland tried to burglarize an unmarked Pasco Sheriff's Office vehicle on Murrow Street in New Port Richey. At the time, the vehicle was occupied by the Strategic Targeted Area Response team, who promptly arrested him.

Analysts positively identified him as the same man from the previous night's attempted burglaries.  

At the time of the arrest, Titland was on felony probation for a burglary/criminal mischief conviction in Pinellas County.