Florida man steals vehicle, calls owner before getting busted, police say

A man has been arrested in Florida after allegedly stealing a woman’s vehicle and then calling her to report the theft, police say. 

Jail records show Marquis Nance, 32, of Ocala, is now facing multiple charges, including grand theft of a motor vehicle, following his recent arrest. 

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office in central Florida says a woman called authorities and told them that Nance "stole her vehicle and called her to tell her about the theft." 

"He then left the vehicle at the Winn-Dixie [supermarket] on Marion Oaks Boulevard. Contact was made with Nance, who denied stealing the vehicle," it added. "However, video surveillance footage showed him exiting the victim’s vehicle at the Winn-Dixie." 

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Police say Nance was then taken into custody and found to be carrying ammunition. 

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Marion Lt. Paul Bloom joked in a video released by police that it was "kind" that Nance told the woman he stole her car.

Court records show Nance is separately facing felony charges, including imprisonment, domestic battery and battery on a law enforcement officer, dating back to early 2023.

In a probable cause affidavit from that case, authorities said they responded to a domestic disturbance call in which a woman who had been in a relationship with Nance alleged he had held her against her will and grabbed and pushed her inside a hotel room they were sharing. Nance, police say, then started "pushing" deputies when he was placed under arrest. 

Nance was previously charged with domestic battery by strangulation following an incident in June 2020. He pleaded not guilty in that case and prosecutors dropped the charges after the victim could not be located.