Deaf Man's Ex-Roomate Arrested For Electronic Thief

VIDEO: Deputy chases man accused of stealing Deaf man's iPad, TV. Deaf man's ex-roommate Michael Palmer arrested.



VERO BEACH, Florida. - A deputy chased after the ex-roommate of a Deaf man whose television and iPad were stolen, an Indian River County Sheriff's Office spokesman said.



Carl Johnson returned to his group home Wednesday night and found he had been burglarized. His clothing, television and, most important, his iPad were gone.



Johnson, who uses the iPad as a way to overcome his challenges in communicating, called 911 and met with Indian River County Sheriff's Office Deputy Greg Farless.



Johnson was telling Farless that he believed his former roommate, Michael Dudley-Palmer, was the thief when Dudley-Palmer returned. Dudley-Palmer had come to the group home to visit another friend.

Farless approached Dudley-Palmer and said that's when Dudley-Palmer ran off. Farless chased him. "Not fun when you're as old as me," Farless said. "But I just stayed with him." The chase went through yards, hedges and streets and lasted three blocks before Dudley-Palmer gave up.



"He ended up admitting to taking the items," Farless said. "The iPad he sold on the street for drugs." Read more: http://www.wpbf.com/news/south-florida/treasure-coast-news/deputy-greg-farless-chases-man-accused-of-stealing-deaf-mans-ipad-tv/-/8882916/21704016/-/13f4i7g/-/index.html