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Deputy’s House Burglarized, Set On Fire; Weapons, Ammo, Badges Stolen
May 2, 2012
The Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office is investigating the targeted attack upon the home of one of their own — an attack that ended with the theft of guns, ammunition, bulletproof vests and badges, spray painted his patrol car and attempted to burn his house to the ground.
The incident occurred Saturday, April 21 at the officer’s residence in Milton, the SRSO announced on Monday. The officer, Lt. Chris Watson, and his wife, Bonita Watson (a Santa Rosa County probation officer) were away for the weekend. While they were away, an unknown suspect or suspects came to their residence and burglarized it, along with his county vehicle.
Numerous firearms, ammunition, bullet proof vests, badges, and other law enforcement items were stolen from the home and vehicle. A large amount of electronics and jewelry was also taken. The suspect then vandalized his county patrol vehicle with spray paint, stole his personal pickup truck (a 2005 dark blue Chevy Avalanche), and then set fire to the home after dousing the master bedroom with gasoline. The fire did not destroy the entire house; however, it caused extensive damage.
The Chevy Avalanche was recovered three days later along Scenic Highway in Pensacola.
The Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office believes this was a targeted attack on the lieutenant or his wife because some of the graffiti on the patrol vehicle state “You can get 1 but you cant get m all (expletive)”.
“This incident is being investigated and every available resource is being utilized to identify, capture, arrest, and convict the person or persons responsible for these criminal acts. The
nature and severity of this case should be of substantial concern to the public, as well as to the law enforcement community as a whole. Those responsible for this crime already have a bold and dangerous mindset in order to commit this type of crime; now they are armed with weapons, badges, and body armor,” said Scott Haines, spokesperson for the Santa Rosa Sheriff’s Office.
Anyone with information on the crime or who may have seen Watson’s 2005 Chevy Avalanche during the time period is asked to call Santa Rosa Crime Stoppers at (850) 437-STOP. Santa Rosa County Crime Stoppers is providing a cash reward of $5000.00 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for this crime.
Pictured top: The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle belonging to Lt. Chris Watson. Pictured below: Someone torched Watson’s bedroom on April 21, according to information released May 1. Submitted photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Comments
32 Responses to “Deputy’s House Burglarized, Set On Fire; Weapons, Ammo, Badges Stolen”
@Jason, you’ve obviously got a screw loose. There looks to be $10,000 plus
damage to the home. There’s probably several thousand more in stolen guns that could be used in future crimes. That car may have to be re-painted. $1000.00
more. No damage mentioned to the stolen car. Do you really think this should go unpunished? Really?
personally i find this quite funny i mean no one got hurt..and ining he lost so no sorrsurance pays for everythow for the cop…lol..leave them kids alone…
Not sure in this case…sometimes UPT means Uptown.
Could be some punks who think they are the uptown gang…in big ole Uptown Milton. I guess you can get 1of them, but you can’t get m all.
What does UPT represent?
WD40 will get most of that over spray off the patrol car. Not trying to make light of the situation. Just not much more I can add in support of the Watsons and their ordeal.
I’m curious if this stemmed from a wrongful arrest(unlikely but very possible). I was a victim of a wrongful arrest and handled it the right way by beating the charges in court. Just saying SRSO and a handful of their officers are good ole boys who pick and choose their arrest and some do favors for their friends. Just saying not all LEOs are professional. No offense I have family in law enforcement but believe some cops need to be fired for their stupidity.
Thank you to the suspects. I enjoy reading where your actions have not just caused problems for the people you have done this to, but also us as tax payers. It trickles down and makes the rest of our lives harder. Insurance premiums rise because of crimes being committed and claims having to be filed. The police departments will now spend time investigating this which in the long run will waste tax payers money. Yeah, I really enjoy hearing where someone has been so selfish as to be vengeful and it will ultimately cost me money. It’s not like my bills arent big enough and my paycheck is small enough already.
prayers to this couple. I too have had things stolen and I can tell you, no matter what your career choice, it stinks to have to redo things.
Chris, I just wish you’d caught em in the act………I know you just smiled!!! Keep your head up old friend…..from your old class-mate @ George Stone…..
Dont 4 get there is a chance this could be another leo or someone who works with his wife!!!hope the investgate this inside out!!just saying!!
IN MY PRAYERS!!
It looks like someone’s parents did not teach their children that you do not take what does not belong to you!! We live in a sad society where some people think it ok to steal, as long as you get away with it!
I would love to have a well armed police officer living in MY neighborhood! I’d feel a bit more safe knowing that.
OPINION: There is nothing worse to me than a thief!! They are lower than snail snot! We should follow the Saudi method. Get caught stealing, lose a hand. In our current society, there is NOTHING that deters people from stealing.
God bless all of our peace officers! What they do for the pay they get, takes a special person!!
The best comment is ben’s. “Hopefully, they will spend some time trying to solve this case. They don’t seem too interested when regular folks’ homes are burglarized.”
Absolutely true if you’ve ever been a burglary victim. They come out as a formality, show little to no interest in the case and let you know basically to ‘not get your hopes up’ in terms of the criminals being caught… when you call for a follow-up it is clear that no attention has been given to your ‘case’.. nor will it ever be.
This crime seems screams of ‘vengence’. Not saying this was a crooked cop or anything like that — but to the unstable individual or individuals responsible, that very well may have been the perspective.
I think most people “forget” that law enforcement officers are PEOPLE to, with lives and why must there be countless remarks about what the tax payers pay for..most of you have no idea what an officer deals with on their jobs..they never know if the next one will be their last. You and I “tax payers” should be thankful that the Lord gives strength and wisdom to these men and women so that they can protect us as best they can from harm and be there no matter what to assist us. I grow weary of the lack of respect for law enforcement officers and as well as the lack of compassion for our fellow man. Pray for all involved and pray that the stolen property is not used to harm an innocent person, who might be your next of kin, “Mr Tax payer” ..
If private citizens can have guns at home, why shouldn’t cops? I believe private citizens can buy body armor as well if they’ve got the money.
Thumbs up to molino jim’s and Officer’s Wife’s comments.
May God bless and comfort these officers and lead their fellow officers to catch the criminals who did this.
Thanks for explaining to everyone Molino Jim
Some people just dont realize the true problems public safety officials are facing, this is sad and I hope justice is served. As far as this family goes, I appreciate what you do to help protect me and my family, both your careers play a big role in helping others!! The risks that you both take daily is something else…. Thank you again for your service and I pray for your safety as you continue to protect and serve!!!
Mike
Firefighter
@ paul johnson— With an unmarked car the LEO may be a member of a special unit. What happens if the victim officer is called out and has to go to a problem “right then”? Does he run down to the SO to get his equipment. If his equipment was in the house it should have been safe. Plus how about his personal property that was stolen? In a perfect world all of us would be safe—but it’s not a perfect world. We live in a world that’s not like Mayberry. I had a vehicle broken into one time and some of the stolen items were recovered, most were not. Unless you’ve been a victim you can’t understand the feeling. If the house had burned down most of the equipment would have been destroyed.
Why did this deputy have all these thing at his home? Guns, ammo, bulletproof vest, ect. Did it belong to him or the tax payers? Its seems that another investigation by the FDLE is in order if it was tax payer paid for stuff. Strange!!!
Anyone ever thought that their info is not public record just like mine or my husbands?? My husband works with Lt. Watson at SRSO and our info is blocked across the board! Scary part is if it isn’t a personal attack that means SOMEONE followed either Chris or his wife home one day. She is a probabtion officer, ever think she might have been the target? Glad they were out of town! Of course, the perps most likely knew this. Insurance scam?? Really?? Not even worth my time arguing with stupid people.
As far as equipment being SRSO property….what do you think? If you would offer to pay a little more in taxes im sure the sheriff could afford to hand out safes for ALL the equipment they are required to have. Again, we have some real bright people in this world. Ever thought the equipment was properly stored in a locked car/trunk? If they got in the house, isnt it easy to locate some keys?? Oh my goodness. Some people are so ignorant.
it makes one wonder… This type of crime doesnt happen by chance. What was done that caused the person(s) to act out the way they did? A gun and a badge doesnt make them perfect. I do hope they catch whomever is responsible, I just hope we wont be disappointed…
Its terrible. They will catch the perps.
What happens then , who knows.
$250 buys a good alarm system (DIY) and monitoring is $10/mo.
THIS is either the result of a bust this officer made that put this perpetrator’s relative or friend in jail OR this is someone who wanted it to look that way. I am betting this
is someone this officer knows who wants to JUST MAKE it LOOK like it is revenge by someone that he jailed. I am betting this is someone THE OFFICER knows who just wanted to ROB them of their jewelry, guns and ammo. I’ll bet there will be NO prints or mistakes. I’m betting THIS PERP is SMART and THINKS THIS TYPE OF THING THROUGH AND PROBABLY MORE THAN ONE PERSON WAS INVOLVED.
I BET THERE WAS EVEN A LOCAL LOOK OUT WHO KNEW HE WAS GOING TO
BE OUT OF TOWN AND KNEW WHERE EVERYONE ON THE BLOCK WAS
DURING THE TIME OF THE ROBBERY. The only other problem I have is that
the robber tried to burn the house down. Either they hated this officer OR was
this whole thing a scam to collect insurance (not saying that was the case) just
another thing that has to be considered.
Be very careful with this as you may be lead on a wild goose chase because..I believe…..THIS WAS A NEIGHBOR AND PROBABLY SOMEONE YOU KNOW .
JMHO AND GOOD LUCK BECAUSE these people have probably done this
before or something similar every time they need money and they should be
stopped DEAD IN THEIR TRACKS before they hurt someone if they haven’t
done that before during another scam conspiracy robbery.
Again…No SELF- respect or Respect for others and their property!
Hopefully, they will spend some time trying to solve this case. They don’t seem too interested when regular folks’ homes are burglarized.
This is so sad. The Watson’s are wonderful people. I hope the people involved are caught quickly!
Hopefully they will be caught soon, and justice be served…
May God be with you (Chris) and your family, in this time of need.
The people responsible for this aren’t that brave or bold! my guess is they somehow knew they were out of town and knew they were facing no real danger at the time, BUT, now they are, and I hope they are smart enough to realize it cause they need to scared. They are just that dumb and careless. My bet is they will be picked up very soon because there again, they weren’t smart enough to drive that vehicle without leaving something behind.
I hope they are picked up soon and locked up forever!!
Was any of the equipment the property of Santa Rosa County? If so why was it not in a gun safe or at the office? Perhaps Sheriff Hall needs to require deputies to safeguard property.
Paul Johnson, Milton, Fl
I am so sorry to hear this! I hope your things are recovered and your insurance covers the loss. You do so much for the community and and I hope they will help catch the bad guys who did this!
Kind of obvious who ever did it knew they were out of town. No one in their right mind would do this knowing they were home. Hopefully they had everything in the house insured.
Hopefully they can avoid the shootout,innocent, people could be hurt. But yes this trash needs to be off the street.
I wonder who knew that this couple would be away from home for the weekend?
It would be even more ominous to speculate that the perp/s did not know they were away.
I hope to be reading tomorrow about how they lost their shootout with deputies in some remote location. Once they have crossed THIS line, there’s only one way out.
Chris, I am so sorry for what you and your family are going through. I pray they find this person or people and justice be served.
May God be with you and your family and pray for a speedy recovery of your losses.