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Ex-con arrested in violent kidnappings released from hospital

Police say Brian Fogerty sexually assaulted 1 woman, kidnapped another

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 41-year-old man who was the subject of a multicounty manhunt in connection with two armed robberies, kidnappings and a sexual assault was absentee booked on July 27 into the Duval County Jail, because he was in the hospital.

Brian Fogerty faces kidnapping, carjacking with a deadly weapon and home invasion robbery with a deadly weapon charges, according to the Duval County Jail records.

Fogerty is being held without bond on a charge of armed sexual battery and a $1 million bond on charges of sexual assault and kidnapping from Jacksonville Beach. 

The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said Fogerty, an ex-convict on supervised release and who police said was considered armed and dangerous, was captured July 26 about 7:15 p.m. during a traffic stop near the intersection of Main Street and 25th Street.

He was found hiding in the back seat of a red vehicle that was being driven by someone else, the Sheriff's Office said.

Police said a tip led them to the arrest.

Just hours before he was taken into custody July 26, employees of a car business in the area said the red car was parked across the street and Fogerty came over inquiring about buying a car.

"He came over and spoke with him (fellow employee) about the cars. I guess he was pretending to be interested in the cars, or maybe he was interested. I'm not sure, but the conversation didn't go any further than five minutes. And then he went back over, across the street, and got in his car," said an employee at the car lot, who only wished to be identified as Crystal.

Crystal said the hood of the small, red car was lifted up and it seemed like he was having engine problems. But after learning what he's accused of doing, she said she believes he had a different plan.

"He probably was looking for another getaway car, hoping to ditch that one, because when I read the article, he had ditched a couple of cars before. So, I'm guessing that's what he was here for," Crystal said.

Crystal said it's scary to think that she or her fellow employees could have been new victims. 

"I saw that on the news. That puts me on extra alert because I am a woman. I walk through the cars all the time and he could have pulled a knife on me and had me in a car. It's definitely insane, but it's a leaning experience," she said.

According to the Sheriff's Office, the person who was driving the car that Fogerty was found in was also arrested. That person's name and involvement has not yet been released by police. 

Manhunt for 'armed, dangerous' man ends in arrest

Fogerty had been spotted in three different counties over a 72-hour period before his arrest the evening of July 26, authorities said.

Baker County Sheriff Joey Dobson said on July 27 that Fogerty was identified as the man who robbed a My Fuel gas station the evening of  July 23 with a machete, after burglarizing two garages in the area. No one was hurt during the robbery, but Fogerty did get away with $300, investigators said.

"Armed with a machete, demanded money and, ultimately, made his way behind the counter and left with that he took," BCSO Maj. Gerald Gonzalez told News4Jax.

Gonzalez said security footage from the gas station matched the description. More charges from Baker County are expected against Fogerty.

News4Jax also learned that the sexual assault occurred July 24 in broad daylight at a realty office in Jacksonville Beach.

JSO Director Tom Hackney said Fogerty drove a stolen car from Clay County to the Jacksonville Beach area on July 24, sexually assaulted a woman at knifepoint at a small business, forced the victim into her car, drove her to her home, kidnapped the woman's husband and two infant children, and drove them to ATMs in Duval County to try to withdraw money from their accounts.

The Jacksonville Beach Police Department told News4Jax it received a call for help at Watson Realty on 3rd Street South at 12:57 p.m. July 24.

Fogerty, whose birthday was July 24, abandoned the car in the Springfield area and fled on foot, Hackney said.

RELATED: 'Armed, dangerous' man wanted in kidnappings, robberies

Hackney said about 7 p.m. July 25, Fogerty forced his way into a Westside home, threatened a woman with a knife and robbed her of jewelry and cash. According to the police report, he dragged the victim by the hair and tied her hands and feet with an extension cord, then put her into her red 2012 Toyota 4Runner and took off.

He also drove her to an ATM trying to get cash, Hackney said, before dropping her in area off County Road 217 in the Middleburg area, near where he used to live.

Police said the SUV Fogerty stole from the second victim was recovered the morning of July 26 in the area of West Beaver Street and North Edgewood Avenue.

Then about two hours before Fogerty was found, Hackney said that Fogerty had been spotted on the Westside near Commonwealth and Edgewood avenues, where he tried to get a cab about 3:30 p.m. He did not have money and the driver refused to take him, Hackney said.

"The desperate nature of what he's doing is extremely concerning," Hackney said at a news conference.

The Sheriff's Office said it coordinated with multiple agencies to find Fogerty. Hackney said the U.S. Marshals Service was called in to help in the manhunt.

"I need people to be scared. I need people to be aware of this guy. He is desperate. His acts are desperate," Hackney said.

Hackney said it's particularly alarming that his victims appear to have been chosen at random.

"He's a bad dude. He's got a bad history of violence, and it's showing today," Hackney said. "I wouldn't put anything past this guy. I wouldn't put anything action-wise beyond what he could be potentially able to do."

Fogerty went to prison in 2008 after being convicted for eluding  police in Duval County. He was just released in May. He has a long criminal record dating back to the 1990s, with dozens of arrests in Bradford, Clay, Duval, Marion and Seminole counties.

Watson Reality President Ed Forman released the following statement to News4Jax July 28:

“The agent is home and doing better. That’s great news. I had a conference call today with our entire leadership team and allowed everyone to express their feelings, make some recommendations as far as changes, and what I heard was caring, love, concern and fear. I am looking at everything to raise the intensity or bar on safety. Education, training, analyzing our facility, everything from top to bottom and there’s some things we’re doing that I would not share because that would play into the hands of evil People. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with and for our team it really hit home hard. What I would share with the public is analyze how you operate your business organization – analyze everything for the safety of your people. Analyze the citizen, whether you’re going into the shopping mall, raise the level of awareness because that’s extremely important. It’s a wake up call. That’s the message here. In the midst of something that’s really bad.  When one of us hurts all of us hurt. The entire Watson company is hurting right now. I’m sorry we have this situation but everyone can look at what can we do to improve and reduce the risk of something like this happening. Evil doesn’t have a face. You can’t identify evil.”