JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — The Jacksonville Beach Police Department arrested a man allegedly posing as a Grubhub driver accused of stealing a puppy from a customer's condominium Saturday night.
According to the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, Arlinson Chilito delivered food to a condominium in the 1000 block of 11th Avenue South. In a statement, Grubhub said Chilito was using another driver's account without the company's knowledge.
During the delivery, at around 6 p.m., police said Chilito took a Teacup Poodle from the customers that had ordered the food and hid the puppy inside his bag.
Officers and detectives used surveillance video to identify Chilito, who was found inside his residence with the puppy.
The puppy was safely returned to her owners.
Police arrested Chilito and booked him into the Duval County Jail on charges of Grand Theft. The driver whose account was used by Chilito has been banned from Grubhub.
Chilito made his first appearance in court Sunday afternoon where the judge set his bond at $75,003.
During the court appearance, it was discovered that Chilito is currently on probation for driving under the influence.
The judge told Chilito “you are not to have any contact with the listed victim in this case. That means you cannot call write text email contact them by any form of social media. You are not allowed to go by their home and you are also not allowed to have anyone reach out to them to convey any sort of message from you.”
The next court appearance for his grand theft charge is set for Feb. 23.
Aside from this charge, First Coast News has discovered that Chilito is facing charges for possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving while his license was suspended.
These offenses also occurred during his probation for his DUI. His bond was set at a total of $17,509 for these three charges.
Chilito's next court appearance for the misdemeanor charges is Feb. 8 at 10 a.m.
Grubhub sent the following statement on the arrest:
“We are shocked and appalled by this behavior, and there is absolutely no tolerance for it on Grubhub. We confirmed the individual charged with this crime was not a Grubhub driver and has never been contracted with us. He was using another contracted driver's account without Grubhub’s permission or knowledge, which is a fraudulent misuse of our platform. We banned the driver permanently from our platform and support efforts to prosecute both individuals to the full extent of the law. We run rigorous background and motor vehicle checks before contracting with any driver and are committed to continuously reviewing and evolving our practices to prevent fraud and ensure safety for the Grubhub community."
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A Jacksonville Beach couple is asking for the public's help in finding their dog, who they say was stolen from their home Saturday night.
It happened around 6 p.m. on Saturday at their condo on 11th Avenue South. A spokesperson with the Jacksonville Beach Police Department confirmed officers are investigating.
Lexi is a 10-month-old Red Teacup Poodle and just had surgery to get spayed Friday.
Kim and Rick Block told First Coast News that they ordered food off of Grubhub from Gusto Italian restaurant.
They said they had the Grubhub driver bring the food up to their unit. Kim Block said she turned around for a split second to put the food down, and said when she turned back around, the dog was gone.
She searched their entire condo for several minutes yelling the dog’s name but she couldn’t find her.
“It was surreal," Kim said. "I was walking through the house calling her, 'Lexi, Lexi, here Lexi,' and she was just nowhere. She's always right by my side. She always wants to be right next to me. She doesn't even weigh four pounds. She weighs 3.7 pounds. She's very tiny, and she always wants to be next to me. She's my little baby. And I just can't believe that she's gone."
Kim Block said she then talked to the doorman, who showed her the security video.
In the video, you can see a man, who the couple said is the driver, with their dog getting into the elevator. The video appears to show the man putting the dog into his bag. Then, a second security video shows the man walking out of his building and driving away in a dark blue sedan.
"There are no words," Rick Block said. "My wife and I have been married for three years. She's an only child. She has no children. This is her child. And you tell me a word, or some words, that are sufficient to describe the incredible love and devotion my wife pays to this dog all day, every day since we got her 10 months ago."
The restaurant was able to give officers security video to show a partial tag of the driver’s vehicle. First Coast News asked Grubhub about the incident.
In a statement a spokesperson said:
"We have absolutely no tolerance for misconduct on our platform. We’re investigating the incident to confirm if it was one of our drivers involved and will fully cooperate with local authorities."