Crime & Safety
Cocaine, Sunglasses And The Tip That Cracked The Case
A traffic stop marked the end of the line for a man who allegedly stole more than $3,500 worth of sunglasses from a Westfield Brandon store.
A tipster who spotted a familiar face on the news led deputies to the capture of the so-called "sunglass bandit," who was caught with cocaine and drug paraphernalia in the back seat of a car at Interstate 75 and Brandon Boulevard, according to a report from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office.
Deputies at a traffic stop June 27 took into custody 26-year-old Matthew Stephen Bolyard, who allegedly is the thief behind a spate of robberies from the Sunglass Hut at the Westfield Brandon shopping mall.
Larry McKinnon reported that in addition to the two thefts reported this week — June 14 and June 20 — Boylard is wanted in connection with three additional thefts from the same retail outlet.
"Bolyard is now facing five counts of grand theft along with the drug charges," McKinnon said in the report. Additional charges are pending, he added, "related to dealing in stolen property."
Bolyard allegedly is the man who left the Sunglass Hut on June 14 without paying for "multiple pairs of sunglasses, valued at $1,760."
Six days later he reportedly returned to the store and stole another $1,800 worth of sunglasses, after telling a store employee, "You aren't going to like me for this, but I don't care."
Find out what's happening in Brandonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
