Florida Man Drops Through Ceiling Into Liquor Store, Steals Items

A Florida Man has made headlines for a break-in that had a weird list of stolen items, but also for the way he broke into the store.

Officers with the Bradenton Police Department in Florida responded to a burglary alarm at Bud's Mini Mart on Carlton Drive around 9:55pm.

Footage from the CCTV cameras shows a man dropping down into the store from a vent in the ceiling, triggering the store's security system.

The man, later identified as 46-year-old Bryan Jones, spent less than 10 minutes inside the store, but did take a few handfuls of things.

Police say Jones walked through the store, and grabbed a few handfulls of cigarettes, a couple of stacks of lottery tickets, alcohol, bologna and cheese slices.

Officers reviewed the store's footage and identified Jones.

Detectives spotted Jones near the store “enthusiastically scratching” the lottery tickets while carrying a backpack full of cigarettes.

“If your burglary ends with you scratching stolen lottery tickets a short distance from the crime scene, your odds of avoiding arrest are significantly worse than your odds of winning the lottery,” BPD said in a Facebook post.

Jones has been arrested and is facing charges with burglary to a structure causing damage and criminal mischief.