Fort Lauderdale Woman Laughs During Court Hearing After Allegedly Stealing BSO Patrol Car and Driving It 90 Miles

Fort Lauderdale Woman Accused of Stealing BSO Patrol Car, Driving More Than 90 Miles Before Arrest in Port St. Lucie

A Fort Lauderdale woman is facing a long list of criminal charges after authorities say she stole a marked Broward Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle from outside BSO headquarters, drove it more than 90 miles north on Interstate 95 and was eventually arrested in Port St. Lucie while wearing a ballistic vest displaying sheriff’s office insignia.

Shannon Marie Dillon, 42, was taken into custody Tuesday night, September 22, after law enforcement agencies across multiple counties coordinated to locate the stolen patrol vehicle. The incident began shortly after 9 p.m., when Broward County Regional Communications was notified that a marked BSO vehicle had been stolen from the public parking area of the agency’s Public Safety Building at 2601 W. Broward Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale.

The circumstances surrounding how Dillon allegedly gained access to the patrol vehicle remained under investigation Wednesday. BSO has opened an Internal Affairs investigation into the incident to determine exactly what happened and whether any agency policies were violated. BSO said the deputy assigned to the vehicle was on duty when he reported his marked unit missing.

Stolen BSO Cruiser Tracked North on I-95

After the vehicle was reported stolen, authorities began working to locate the marked patrol car as it traveled north through South Florida. The Broward Sheriff’s Office coordinated with the Florida Highway Patrol, Port St. Lucie Police Department and St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office during the search.

At approximately 9:40 p.m., St. Lucie County deputies, Port St. Lucie police officers and FHP troopers responded to Interstate 95 after receiving information that the stolen BSO vehicle was traveling north near Gatlin Boulevard. Authorities located the patrol vehicle abandoned on the northbound I-95 exit ramp to Southwest Gatlin Boulevard near mile marker 118, more than 90 miles from where authorities say it had been stolen in Fort Lauderdale.

St. Lucie County deputies searching the surrounding area then encountered Dillon, according to investigators. Authorities said she was wearing an outer ballistic vest displaying Broward Sheriff’s Office insignia when deputies found her. Body camera footage released after the arrest shows deputies confronting Dillon near the interstate and ordering her to the ground at gunpoint.

“Get down on the ground. Put your hands up,” a deputy can be heard ordering Dillon before warning her not to move.

Dillon was taken into custody without further incident, and the stolen patrol vehicle was recovered. BSO later said nothing was missing from the vehicle. The northbound I-95 exit ramp at Gatlin Boulevard was temporarily closed while crime-scene investigators processed the scene and reopened at approximately 12:45 a.m. Wednesday.

Dillon Faces Multiple Criminal Charges

Dillon faces charges in St. Lucie County connected to the stolen law enforcement equipment and other allegations arising from the investigation. Those charges include grand theft of law enforcement equipment, unlawful use of a police badge or law-enforcement vehicle, unlawful possession of four or fewer identification items, possession or use of drug paraphernalia, possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon, driving while her license was suspended and resisting an officer without violence.

Authorities said Dillon also faces Broward County charges for grand theft of law enforcement equipment from an authorized emergency vehicle and grand theft in connection with the original theft of the BSO vehicle. The charges are accusations, and Dillon is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

Judge Reviews Dillon’s Criminal History

Dillon appeared before a judge Wednesday, September 23, for a first appearance hearing that quickly became unusual as the court attempted to work through the allegations and determine conditions of release. During the proceeding, the judge reviewed what was described in court as an extensive criminal history, referencing roughly 20 pages of prior records and noting previous failures to appear and violations of injunctions. The court also said Dillon had been out on bond in Broward County in connection with other pending allegations when she was arrested in the latest case. A public defender was appointed to represent her.

The court found no probable cause for the resisting without violence charge at the first appearance hearing and ordered Dillon released on her own recognizance on that particular count. That ruling did not release her from custody on the remaining allegations.

During the hearing, the judge announced substantial bond amounts on several of the remaining charges, including $50,000 on the motor vehicle grand theft allegation, $25,000 on the felon in possession allegation, $10,000 on each of two fraud or impersonation related counts, and $5,000 amounts associated with the suspended-license and drug-paraphernalia allegations.

Subsequent published reporting citing St. Lucie County jail records listed Dillon’s aggregate bond at $52,000. Because that figure differs from the individual amounts discussed during the first appearance hearing, Dillon’s current bond and custody status should be treated as subject to the official court docket and jail records as the cases proceed in St. Lucie and Broward counties.

Defendant Repeatedly Interrupts Court Hearing

Dillon repeatedly spoke during the hearing while the judge attempted to address the charges. At one point, she repeatedly asked where the judge was and made remarks about having “saved his life.” Later in the proceeding, Dillon began discussing her children and parental rights, saying she wanted an opportunity to tell her children her “real story.” The judge instructed Dillon to discuss concerns about her mental health with her appointed public defender rather than attempt to address those issues during the initial bond proceeding.

The unusual courtroom exchange was only one component of a case that now stretches across multiple jurisdictions and raises two separate questions: what criminal responsibility Dillon may ultimately face and how a marked Broward Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle was allegedly taken from the public parking area outside the agency’s Public Safety Building in the first place.

BSO Opens Internal Affairs Investigation

BSO spokesman Carey Codd confirmed that the sheriff’s office has launched an Internal Affairs investigation into the circumstances surrounding the theft and whether agency policy was violated. Authorities had not publicly explained as of Wednesday evening exactly how Dillon allegedly obtained access to the vehicle. BSO said the deputy assigned to the marked unit was on duty when he reported it missing and that nothing was missing from the vehicle when it was recovered.

Those unanswered questions are particularly significant because the stolen vehicle was a marked law-enforcement unit capable of giving someone the appearance of official police authority, and investigators say Dillon was later found wearing a ballistic vest displaying BSO insignia.

No injuries were reported in connection with the incident, and BSO credited cooperation among the participating law enforcement agencies with bringing the case to a peaceful conclusion. The investigation remains active as authorities work to determine exactly how the patrol vehicle was taken, what occurred during the drive north and whether any BSO policies were violated.

Sources & Further Reading

WPTV — Original report and court appearance
CBS News Miami — Arrest video, 90-mile drive and Internal Affairs investigation
CBS12 — Multi-agency response, BSO statement and vehicle recovery details
WPLG Local 10 — Public Safety Building theft and charges
NBC 6 South Florida — First-appearance court hearing