Clermont Police arrest three suspects in a stolen car containing items stolen from several retail businesses.
On Tuesday, September 3, Clermont Police Officers arrested three individuals driving a stolen rental car filled with a variety of stolen items. At approximately 9:00 am, Clermont Police Detectives were driving an unmarked police vehicle when a silver Toyota passenger car nearly struck them. The detectives activated their emergency lights and attempted a traffic stop on the vehicle that continued to drive recklessly. The driver of the vehicle refused to stop and began to flee from the detectives who immediately deactivated their emergency lights and did not pursue. The driver of the suspect vehicle ran a red light at the intersection of Hancock Road and SR 50, and struck the side of another vehicle driven by an adult female and her adult son. Clermont detectives responded to the collision within moments and detained all five occupants of the stolen vehicle.
The occupants of the vehicle struck, a Ford Mustang, sustained minor injuries but were medically cleared by emergency medical services at the scene. The driver of the stolen vehicle, Mr. Deonte Slaughter, 27 years old of Orlando, was arrested and charged with grand theft of a motor vehicle, fleeing and eluding, reckless driving, driving while license suspended and felony retail theft. Two passengers, Ms. Vallisa Fisher, 30 years old was charged with felony retail theft, and Mr. Ernie Jones, 37 years old was also charged with felony retail theft. Both Fisher and Jones are residents of Orlando. Two other passengers were determined to not be involved with these crimes and were released at the scene of the crash.
Officers recovered several items from the vehicle that had been stolen from a variety of retail businesses, such as home improvement stores in Lake and Orange County. The stolen vehicle was towed from the scene and the stolen items were collected as evidence. The Clermont Police Department is working with detectives with law enforcement agencies from both Lake and Orange County as this investigation continues.
