DeLand, FL - A 40-year-old DeLand man is again charged with driving while license suspended or revoked. Jonathan Hornsby has faced that same charge a dozen times since November 2014. This time, you can add Grand Theft of a Motor Vehicle and Possession of Methamphetamine to the list.
Hornsby was charged yesterday (September 11) after a Volusia County Sheriff's deputy got a LoJack alert in Deltona. He followed the signal to the dead-end of Rocky Hill Drive and found a 2001 flatbed Dodge truck which had been reported stolen in Illinois on July 19, 2019. An open trailer was attached to the back of the truck.
While waiting for back-up, the truck started to pull ahead out of the road so the deputy drove towards it. As the deputy neared the truck, it pulled into the driveway of a home on Rocky Hill Drive. The deputy approached the vehicle and found Hornsby in the driver's seat. When asked for his driver's license, Hornsby stated he did not have one.
The deputy ordered Hornsby out of the truck and handcuffed him. The deputy proceeded to empty the suspect's pockets, finding a knife and a clear, plastic baggie containing what appeared to be Methamphetamine. Hornsby confirmed that's what it was.
The deputy then confirmed that the VIN number on the truck matched the stolen vehicle out of Illinois. In further conversation, Hornsby told the deputy that he got the truck from a friend named "Gary Hoseman" who lives in Holopaw Florida. He further stated he had been using the truck for several weeks and was in the area soliciting tree work.
VCSO verified that Hornsby's driver's license was suspended with numerous suspensions to include the defendant being listed as a Habitual Traffic Offender on 02-17-2016 for a period of 60 months and again on 09-27-2017 for a period of 60 months. He's also been arrested on numerous drug charges.
The owner of the truck was contacted in Illinois. She reported that her daughter had stolen the truck several months ago and that Gary Hoseman, the person Hornsby said he got the truck from, is her daughter's long-time on-again-off-again boyfriend.
Hornsby was taken to the Volusia County Jail. He's already out on a $4500 bond.
