Man Arrested in Theft of Camera Equipment

A homeless Fayetteville man faces two felony charges after police said he stole $4,000 worth of camera equipment from a parked car.

Jacob Guest, 34, was booked into the Washington County Detention Center on Sunday night but doesn’t have a bond amount or a court date listed, according to the Sheriff’s Department website. Guest faces felony charges of breaking or entering and theft of property and a misdemeanor charge of public intoxication.

A preliminary police report said Fayetteville police responded to a report of an intoxicated man trying to hug females at a grocery store at approximately 5 p.m. on South School Avenue. The man, identified as Guest, told officers he had been drinking beer and mouthwash, the report said.

The report said Guest was carrying a camera and a tripod, and officers had just received a report of similar items being stolen from a car parked at the Fayetteville National Cemetery, which is a few blocks away from the store. Guest told officers a homeless man had given the items to him, the report said.

The items Guest had were identified as belonging to the person who had reported them stolen, the report said. The man said he had parked his car and noticed a bearded man in a green coat carrying the items from his car, and Guest matched the description, the report said.

Guest told officers at the detention center that he had taken the items from the car, the report said.