JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville doctor is facing charges for stealing donations and other items meant for Hurricane Helene victims, the Buncombe County Sheriff's Office said in a release Monday.
On Oct. 25, deputies began investigating Mark Anthony Smith following several complaints of a man looting donations in the Swannanoa area, which sits roughly 10 miles east of Asheville, North Carolina.
Smith is a licensed doctor and the Duval County Jail is listed as his primary practice address, according to the Florida Department of Health.
Community members told deputies the suspect's name was Mark, and he was driving a U-Haul truck.
Smith was later located inside a U-Haul, and after executing a search warrant, detectives found more than $12,000 in stolen donations from the Hearts Hurt nonprofit and more than $2,000 in personal items belonging to the nonprofit's owner.
Detectives also found donations they say Smith sold to a local pawn shop for cash.
Mark was arrested on Oct. 31 and is being held on a $60,000 bond.
Smith is charged with the following crimes:
- Breaking or Entering
- Larceny after Breaking or Entering
- Obtain Property by False Pretense
- Trespassing During a State of Emergency
- Failure to Return Hired MV > $4,000.00
- Injury to Personal Property
- Felony Larceny
- Failure to Return Rental Property
First Coast News met with Smith on Oct. 15 while covering his efforts to collect donations for Helene victims.
At the time, he said the donations were for victims hit the hardest by the storm, including Swananoa and Black Mountain, near where he was arrested days later.
Smith said he was returning to a donation center in North Carolina he said was started by himself, a Pennsylvania man and a Texas organization.
First Coast News reached out to Hearts Hurt for comment on Smith's arrest.
First Coast News also reached out to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office for clarification on Smith's employment at the Duval County Jail.
