Thieves broke into 20 cars while Polk County residents were ‘sleeping peacefully,' sheriff says
KISSIMMEE, Fla. (WFLA) — Two masked men who were caught pulling on car door handles early Tuesday morning have been connected to nearly two dozen previously reported burglaries, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said.
The suspects, Joshua Mahase, 18, and Julian Cortez, 19, along with a third unidentified suspect, were spotted by someone in the area of Pickerel Court in Kissimmee, who reported the suspicious activity to deputies.
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Home surveillance video showed the suspects wearing dark clothing, ski masks, and gloves as they tried to open the door handles of a black Chevrolet truck, the sheriff's office said. One of the suspects also appeared to be carrying a red tool bag.
They left the area in a white Nissan Maxima, which deputies later found making a right turn off Lake Marion Creek Road onto Marigold Avenue.
Authorities stopped the vehicle and detained Mahase and Cortez. The sheriff's office was still working to identify the third suspect as of Wednesday.
Investigators said they found several clothing items inside the Nissan Maxima that matched what the suspects were seen wearing earlier that morning, including masks and leather gloves.
Also inside the vehicle were multiple driver's licenses, passports, and debit and credit cards that authorities said did not belong to either Mahase or Cortez.
According to the sheriff's office, Mahase admitted to targeting unlocked vehicles, and provided detectives with details on several additional burglaries that had previously been reported.
Detectives said they were able to link the suspects to at least 20 burglaries over a six-week time span, and they were charged accordingly. They also face drug charges for marijuana deputies said they found in their car.
The charges against them include the following:
Possession of cannabis
Possession of drug paraphernalia
Maintaining a vehicle for drug use
Possession of stolen IDs (nine counts)
Grand theft – firearm
Conspiracy to commit fraud (10 counts)
Conspiracy to commit grand theft
Fraudulent use of credit/debit card (three counts)
Possession of burglary tools (20 counts)
Petit theft (19 counts)
Unlawful possession of personal ID (five or more)
Armed burglary conveyance
Conspiracy to commit burglary conveyance (20 counts)
Burglary unoccupied unarmed conveyance (19 counts)
'Thanks to the citizen who saw something, and said something, we were able to quickly respond and stop these brazen thieves and their criminal enterprise,' said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. 'For over a month they've been victimizing citizens who are sleeping peacefully in the northeast area of our county, breaking into their cars and stealing their stuff. And now they're facing very serious felonies. This is also a great reminder to you all to lock your car doors.'
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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