Man Accused of Stealing Thousands From Laundromat Coin Machines After Crawling Through Ceiling

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – A Brevard County man has been arrested after an alleged ploy to steal thousands from a local laundromat’s coin machines, according to the sheriff’s office.

A Brevard County man has been arrested after an alleged ploy to steal thousands from a local laundromat’s coin machines, according to the sheriff’s office.

In an arrest affidavit, deputies said they received a call about a burglary at the “Laundromat of Port St. John” along West Avenue on June 17, just after 5 a.m.

The caller reportedly told deputies that a man — later identified as Jeffrey Duffey, 39 — had broken into coin machines located in the “employee only” offices.

But by the time deputies arrived, Duffey was no longer at the business.

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However, deputies said they did find evidence of Duffey entering the laundromat and prying open the locked “employee only” door with a crowbar.

This door led to a restricted crawl space, which was typically used for repairs of the laundromat’s appliances, the affidavit shows.

“Once inside this restricted area, Duffey was able to gain access to (the) ceiling, traverse across the building’s rafters, and climb down into the locked ‘employee only’ office, which concealed the rear doors of the coin machines,” the affidavit reads.

According to investigators, two of the coin machines had been pried open, and all of the money inside was taken.

In addition, deputies said Duffey is suspected of burglarizing the same laundromat at least three times prior — once on May 31, then again on June 9, and a third time on June 12.

Just a few hours after the June 17 burglary, deputies found Duffey near the Space Coast Flea Market and brought him in for questioning.

Investigators said that Duffey initially claimed he’d been at home with his girlfriend at the time the burglary happened, and he was already on probation for burglarizing a Chevron gas station down the road.

“(Duffey claims) he did not commit the burglary at the Chevron for the money, as he had a personal vendetta against the owners of the business because he ‘hates those people,’” the affidavit says. “At some point, he worked for the business, and they screwed him out of money, so he in turn burglarized them.”

When pressed on the similarity and proximity of the Chevron burglary and the laundromat burglaries, Duffey allegedly told deputies that the modus operandi was “not uncommon,” deputies added.

Duffey then pointed out another recent burglary at a local “casino” at 672 West Ave. — a location close by the Chevron and laundromat — that happened back in January, where the culprit used similar methods, according to detectives.

While Duffey suggested that the suspect who was arrested in that investigation could be linked to the laundromat burglaries, deputies discovered that there was no suspect in that case, as it had gone unsolved.

Then, Duffey went into a tirade about how he could have perpetrated these crimes, becoming “joyful and braggadocios” as he did so, deputies said.

“Duffey went on to brag that should he have committed these crimes, he would have never been caught on surveillance camera,” the affidavit reads. “He further explained how he knows how to disable most surveillance systems, and would have tampered with the businesses’ cameras, as most run off of Wi-Fi.”

Deputies also noted that the Wi-Fi router at the laundromat had been tampered with during the prior three burglaries.

He then invited deputies to search his home, and they found a “large quantity” of $20 bills in his bedside drawer.

According to the affidavit, Duffey’s girlfriend later told deputies she hadn’t seen him at home earlier that morning, and surveillance footage showed Duffey at the laundromat.

In total, Duffey stole around $5,000 from the laundromat’s coin machines, severely damaging the equipment as he did so, deputies claim.

As a result, Duffey was arrested on Friday and faces charges of grand theft, three counts of burglary, and two counts of possessing burglary tools with an intent to use. He is held on bond of $77,500.

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