According to officials on Monday, a man who North Carolina deputies claimed was a Florida doctor is charged with taking goods and donations from Hurricane Helene victims.
Following his arrest on October 25, Mark Anthony Smith, a licensed physician from Jacksonville, Florida, is facing numerous charges, according to Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office Matt Marshall.
According to Marshall, at that point, patrol deputies and detectives were notified that a man was stealing donations in the Swannanoa region.
According to Marshall, the individual driving a U-Haul truck was identified by the community as “Mark,” and the deputies were informed that they recognized him.
Deputies spotted Smith in the U-Haul and conducted a search warrant, Marshall said.
According to him, investigators discovered over $12,000 in pilfered donations from a group named “Hearts Hurt,” along with over $2,000 in personal belongings of the nonprofit’s owner and operator.
Additionally, donations that Smith sold to a nearby pawn shop for money were discovered by detectives.
Smith faces the following charges:
- Entering or breaking
- Theft following a break-in or entry
- Acquire property by deception
- Intruding when there is an emergency
- Failure to return a rental car worth more than $4,000.
- Personal property damage
- Felony theft
- Not returning the rented property
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According to Marshall, he is being held at the Buncombe County Detention Center on a bond of $60,000.
