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Florida man allegedly takes bite of RaceTrac pizza, leaves without paying

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Florida man allegedly takes bite of RaceTrac pizza, leaves without paying


Ronald Broaddus was arrested and charged with petit theft on May 10, 2024. (Photo: Flagler County Sheriffs Office)

A Florida man has landed himself in jail after he allegedly took a bite out of a slice of pizza from inside a RaceTrac and left without paying for it because he was “tired” after work and “didn’t have the money,” according to an arrest affidavit from the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office. 

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Ronald Broaddus, 62, was arrested and charged with petit theft on Friday after the incident that unfolded at the gas station on SR-100 in Palm Coast, the affidavit said. 

A RaceTrac employee told deputies that a man, later identified as Broaddus, stole pizza and frozen yogurt and left the store without paying, according to the affidavit. The employee said he went outside to confront Broaddus, who initially said he did pay for the items even though two people inside the gas station said he didn’t. 

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“I told him, ‘I’m calling the police.’ He proceeded (as I’m on the phone with dispatch) to throw away the pizza box and ice cream. He came back to his bike (as I’m still on the phone with dispatch) and said, ‘You better watch your back because I’m going to kick your a***,” the employee said, according to the affidavit. “He then proceeded to step toward me with his bike in a hostile way. I stayed far enough back so he could not touch me. He then rode away.”

The employee said RaceTrac wished to pursue charges, and also trespass Broaddus from the location. 

The two slices of buffalo chicken pizza and a cup of frozen yogurt totaled $8.98 before tax. 

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Another deputy located Broaddus nearby and initiated a traffic stop. In a post-Miranda interview with deputies, Broaddus said he went into the gas station, picked up the frozen yogurt and pizza and walked outside to eat. The man said he was approached by an employee and told him that he didn’t have enough money to pay for the items, but would pay for it at a later time. 

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“(Broaddus) then stated that he threw the pizza and ice cream away after the clerk threatened to call law enforcement,” the affidavit said. 

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He was placed under arrest for petit theft and was transported to the Flagler County Inmate Facility. Broaddus’ sister was contacted and she retrieved the bicycle after the arrest. 

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Broaddus told deputies that even though he was trespassed from the gas station, he “will be returning” to “defacate on the property,” the affidavit said. 

Broaddus remains in custody on $1,000 bond. 



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Kids with autism are prone to drowning. Florida is trying to prevent that

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Kids with autism are prone to drowning. Florida is trying to prevent that


Garland Jones, recreational therapist and senior program director of the YMCA of South Florida’s special needs program, teaches Mackenzie Wesley, 5, to breathe safely in water by using a ping pong ball as a visual aid.

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WESTON, Fla. — Mackenzie Wesley sports a big grin and bright blue Lilo & Stitch swim gear as she runs into her weekly swim lessons. It’s fitting, because the 5-year-old has something in common with movie character Lilo: She adores water.

“Whether it’s the pool or beach, she enjoys it fully,” says her dad Steven Wesley.

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Mackenzie isn’t alone: Many kids with autism share a natural love for water because it can be sensory bliss — the feeling on their skin, the pressure and the sparkle of the water can all be soothing. Lucky for her, Mackenzie lives here, less than an hour outside of Miami in a state that’s dotted with bodies of water.

But there’s a tragic reality tied to that fact, as Mackenzie’s mom, Brittany Bucknor, is all too aware. “In Florida, there’s water everywhere, and also with kids her age, and also just being on the spectrum, it’s a very — way higher — rate of having an incident of drowning.”

Kids with autism are 160 times more likely than other children to die from drowning, according to a seminal 2017 study from Columbia University. In fact, in Florida, most children drown in backyard pools. That’s largely because about half of autistic children have a tendency to wander from safe settings. That fact, combined with an attraction to water can make for a dangerous combination. Quality swim lessons can help.

That’s one of the reasons Mackenzie’s parents enrolled her in Swim Buddies, the YMCA of South Florida’s low-cost program aimed at children with disabilities. It’s also why the state of Florida, which has one of the highest childhood drowning rates in the nation, is expanding a voucher program on July 1 that will put children ages 1-7 who have autism at the front of the line for subsidized swim lessons. “We have tragic circumstances and stories across the state of Florida of young children with autism that are wandering away, they’re eloping from their homes, from their classrooms,” says Florida state Rep. Anna Eskamani, a Democrat, and one of the lawmakers who sponsored the bipartisan bill that changed the state’s swim vouchers.



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Officials say 31-year-old Brittany Clark died after being attacked by an alligator while swimming in a river. Clark was hiking in a state park outside Orlando when the attack happened. NBC News’ Liz Kreutz has more.

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Fast-growing South Florida wildfire consumes over 4,000 acres

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Fast-growing South Florida wildfire consumes over 4,000 acres


A swiftly-growing wildfire in western Broward County has consumed over 4,000 acres, having ballooned in size since igniting a few days ago.

The Atlantic Fire, located near the Sawgrass Expressway and Commercial Boulevard, burned 4,755 acres and was 0% contained as of 8:01 p.m. June 29, according to a map of active wildfires provided by the Florida Forest Service. The fire began over the weekend, and had grown to 180 acres by Sunday.

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Wildfires in neighboring Miami-Dade County burned thousands of acres in recent weeks

Three wildfires burning in Miami-Dade County cumulatively consumed over 19,000 acres over the past few weeks.

The Quarry 2 Fire, which began on June 15 near NW 137 Avenue and NW 41 Street, had grown to 19,018 acres and was 97% contained as of 1:26 p.m. June 21, according to a map of active wildfires provided by the Florida Forest Service. The Well Fire, which began on June 16 and is located near NW 122 Avenue and NW 58 Street, had burned 2,814 acres and was 90% contained as of 4:41 p.m. June 25.

The Corrections Fire, located south of 8th Street and west of Krome Avenue, had burned 363 acres and was 95% contained as of 12:12 p.m. June 25.

Sarah Perkel is a South Florida Connect Reporter for the USA TODAY Network’s Florida Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.



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