Car burglar leaves cell phone in vehicle, Charlotte County deputies say

A Port Charlotte man is facing multiple charges of vehicle burglary after the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office says he left his phone behind inside one of the vehicles.

Over the weekend, a newspaper delivery driver noticed a light shining inside a vehicle. As he got closer, a man dressed in a dark hooded sweatshirt exited and quickly ran behind a home on Pearl Street in Englewood. The witness immediately called the sheriff’s office to report the incident.

Detectives canvassed the area and found several $100 bills, a flashlight and a lighter on the ground behind the home the suspect ran behind. They also received several other reports in the area of additional vehicle burglaries.

Another vehicle in the area had a light on, which turned out to be a cell phone with the flashlight on, pointing upward. Outside the vehicle was a black tube sock. The phone in the vehicle did not belong to the vehicle’s owner, and when it started to ring, the caller stated he had recently lost his phone.

John Rawle, 22, was identified by deputies as the owner of the phone. He faces six counts of burglary of a unoccupied conveyance and one count of grand theft.