Home Depot at 66 Mountain Road in Pasadena

By Zak Failla From Daily Voice

A Glen Burnie man is headed back to prison after stealing a truck while the owner was loading lumber into it outside a Maryland Home Depot, authorities said.

Zachary Ernesto Rolf, 44, pleaded guilty in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court to felony motor vehicle theft and fleeing and eluding police, prosecutors announced Wednesday, Oct. 22.

According to police, the theft happened around June 9 at the Home Depot on Mountain Road in Pasadena. 

The victim told officers his 2014 GMC truck was parked and running near the entrance as he and a friend loaded lumber.

An unknown man got into the vehicle and drove away, police said. The victim reported that approximately $8,000 in tools, $150 in lumber, and his cell phone were inside the truck.

Surveillance footage showed Rolf walking through the parking lot before climbing into the vehicle and taking off toward Route 10, investigators said.

Anne Arundel County Police Aviation tracked the stolen truck as it traveled into Baltimore, where Rolf bailed out in the 2200 block of Langley Street and ran off, prosecutors said. 

He was later captured following a search of the area, with assistance from Baltimore City Police Aviation.

Authorities confirmed Rolf matched the suspect seen in Home Depot’s surveillance video.

Judge Mark Crooks sentenced Rolf to six years in the Division of Corrections, the maximum possible sentence, following his guilty plea, according to the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney’s Office.

“This was a really brazen move by the defendant to steal a truck while the owner was loading lumber into it,” State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess said. 

“This defendant is a repeat offender who had just been released from jail a few days prior to this incident. I want to thank our prosecution team and investigators for their work to take this public safety threat off the streets.”