Duquesne football recruit Jake Collins faces another theft charge just days after he was charged with stealing firearms and jewelry from a Palm Beach County (Florida) sheriff’s deputy’s home, and then pawning some of the items to nearby shops.
Collins is now being accused of stealing from a home near his own that has been empty since its owners died. A judge ordered him held without bail during a bond hearing at the Palm Beach County Jail on Friday, April 20, according to The Palm Beach Post.
After police had investigated Collins’ transactions with pawn shops following the initial charge, investigators found that Collins had also pawned items that weren’t taken from the deputy’s home, including a gold necklace, an expensive watch and a 55-inch television set. Then, an acquaintance of Collins’ confirmed to police that Collins had stolen a gun from the empty home.
The home’s trustee, a granddaughter of the former tenants, was in the process of cleaning the house out, but had not been there in some time. Police investigated and found the house was missing the gun and the TV. A jewelry box that had been broken into was also located.
According to The Palm Beach Post, a judge “ordered Collins held on one charge of armed burglary of a home, three charges of grand theft of a firearm, and one charge each of dealing in stolen property, fraudulently pawning items worth $300 or more and grand theft of between $300 and $5,000.”
Last week, Duquesne Head Football Coach Jerry Schmitt said in a statement obtained by The Duke that the school would not take any action regarding Collins’ status until it had “gathered the necessary factual information.”
— Adam Lindner
This Week in Sports History…
— On April 27, 2017, Marc-Andre Fleury led the Penguins to a 3-2 win over the host Washington Capitals in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Pittsburgh jumped out to a 3-1 series lead before finding itself in a decisive Game 7 in D.C., where it defeated the Capitals 2-0 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
