Woman sentenced to 24 months for stealing side-by-side

Shirley Lynn Wells, 50, of Green Cove Springs was sentenced to two years in prison for the July 26 offenses of burglary of an unoccupied structure and grand theft.

According to court papers, an employee of the victim noticed a black 2017 Polaris RZR 900 missing from his residence while attempting to use the side-by-side. The employee added that she found evidence someone had gained entry into the Middleburg home through a rear window by pushing a window, air conditioning unit into the house from the outside. The employee also stated she had just cleaned the home’s windows and fresh fingerprints from the break-in appeared to remain on the glass.

The victim told a deputy that he had recently evicted Wells, his ex-girlfriend from the home and that the defendant has repeatedly returned to his property unauthorized.  The victim added that he purchased the side-by-side for approximately $17,000. A deputy wrote in an arrest report that the defendant admitted to stealing the vehicle and selling it for approximately $1,200 to settle a debt with a drug dealer.