Andrew Tyler Simmons and Madeline Noel Whaley were arrested Sept. 21 outside a Palm Coast Target after Simmons allegedly tried to leave with trading cards and a storage bin Target valued at $2,555.98. A deputy was already there investigating an unrelated bicycle theft.
Deputies said a search of the BMW found drug paraphernalia, substances that tested presumptively positive for methamphetamine and fentanyl, and a loaded .22-caliber handgun in a backpack; the Sheriff's Office later confirmed the gun was stolen in Jacksonville. The crystal-like substance had a five-gram package weight; the powder's weight could not be measured. Simmons told a deputy a friend directed him to steal cards and offered $10 for smaller boxes and $20 for larger ones.
Three Clay County warrants accuse Simmons of separate earlier trading-card thefts at a Target in Fleming Island on July 14, Aug. 1 and Aug. 8; Target valued the merchandise at $2,599.55, $1,701.50 and $2,519.63, respectively. Each warrant carries a $25,003 bond. Simmons' monetary bonds total $100,509, plus a no-bond St. Johns County warrant; Whaley's bonds total $25,000 on six allegations. Both Flagler cases remain open, with arraignments set for Oct. 27. At Whaley's first appearance, a judge found insufficient probable cause for the allegation that she used or displayed a firearm during a felony.
