Senior citizen allegedly steals more than $20,000 in ammo and accessories at Sportsmans Warehouse

A senior citizen allegedly stole more than $20,000 worth of ammunition and accessories from Sportsmans Warehouse in Lady Lake.

Donald Walter Scherenberg, 71, of Apopka, made multiple trips to the store between March and June where he loaded up his shopping cart with boxes of ammunition, scopes, sighting devices, rifle cases and other merchandise, according to an affidavit of probable cause from the Lady Lake Police Department.

On a May 6 trip to the store, Scherenberg wheeled out his cart with $8,749 worth of merchandise and loaded it into his silver 2021 Toyota Highlander before driving away. It marked his largest single-day heist at the store.

On June 11, he made his final trip to Sportsmans Warehouse and was recognized by store personnel. The Illinois native was “trespassed for life” from the store. The case was hampered by the fact that store employees could not immediately retrieve surveillance images for law enforcement.

A Lady Lake detective went to work on the case and contacted the Apopka Police Department, which was already well aware of Scherenberg. An Apopka detective indicated that Scherenberg “had been the victim of a burglary in the past and was known to have multiple safes full of guns.” A second Apopka detective said that Schrenberg was “selling firearms and accessories on Gunbroker.com and other related sites,” according to the affidavit. One of the detectives drove by Schrenberg’s home and spotted the silver 2021 Toyota Highlander in his driveway. He informed the Lady Lake detective that the vehicle was there.

Warrants were issued for Scherenberg’s arrest and he turned himself in Tuesday at the Lake County Jail. He was booked on multiple counts of grand theft and released after posting $10,000 bond.