A Louisiana man who was part of a 4-person burglary crew that stole more than $100,000 in collectible baseball cards from a Panama City business in 2023 was found guilty of Grand Theft Over $100,000 Wednesday, State Attorney Larry Basford announced.
Christopher Develle Brown, 40, was found guilty of Grand Theft over $100,000. The charge is a first-degree-felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison. Circuit Court Judge Shonna Young Gay set sentencing for June 4.
“Thirty-five years of work and more than $100,000 disappeared on the night of Feb. 16, 2023, when this defendant helped break into this store and steal these cards,” Prosecutor Zachary VanDyke said. “They were in and out in less than 3 minutes. Three minutes, and 35 years’ worth of work – gone.”
The jury needed 78 minutes to reach its verdict after prosecutor VanDyke presented the case. VanDyke said Brown was one of four people involved.
A second defendant, Leon Rowe, Jr., has already been convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison. A third defendant agreed to a plea in exchange for his testimony against the others. The fourth defendant has not been located.
The group is believed to be involved in a series of similar burglaries stretching from Florida to Louisiana.
In the Panama City Police Department case, the defendants took hundreds of collector’s cards ranging from a 1955 Sandy Koufax ($4,500) and 1963 Pete Rose ($4,000), to a 1954 Hank Aaron ($4,000) and a 1948 American Association Babe Ruth ($3,000). The collection included 65 Mickey Mantles, 34 Hank Aarons, 11 Whitey Fords, and cards from Tom Seaver, Roger Maris, Nolan Ryan, and Johnny Bench.
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VanDyke called three witnesses: the cooperating codefendant, Bay County Sheriffs Office Lt. Nicholas Hall, and the victim who had been collecting the cards much of his life.
Key evidence was video surveillance that showed four men smashing through the glass front door, smashing glass showcases inside, and fleeing with bags full of cards within three minutes.
Basford thanked the law enforcement network across the Gulf Coast that collaborated in connecting the cases, and the Bay County Sheriff’s Office for its work on a similar case that assisted the Panama City Police Department’s case.
For more information, contact Mike Cazalas at mike.cazalas@sa14.fl.gov, or call 850-381-7454.