Staff report

ALACHUA, Fla. – Richard Alex Nielsen, Jr., 24, was arrested yesterday and charged with nine felonies after allegedly stealing pills and jewelry from a residence where he was doing construction work.

The victim told a responding Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy that Nielsen was one of a group of workers from a construction company he hired to do work on his home in Alachua. He said Nielsen asked to use the bathroom, so he let him in; Nielsen reportedly came back a second time, saying he’d forgotten his bandanna, and he let him in again. A few minutes later, the victim noticed that his wallet was missing from a drawer, along with two pill bottles (Hydrocodone and acetaminophen) and two gold rings. The victim told the deputy that Nielsen would have had access to the drawer while he was inside the home, and the victim said he saw Nielsen walk over to the west side of the property.

Deputies searched that area of the property and reportedly found a wallet, two gold rings, and two empty prescription bottles on the ground.

Nielsen was detained and placed into a patrol car. A few minutes later, deputies reportedly found a plastic bag on the floor of the patrol vehicle; the bag reportedly contained seven smaller baggies with different kinds of pills. The pills included Clonazepam, Alprazolam, OxyContin, Lorazepam, Lortab, and Valium. The contents of the victim’s pill bottles were also reportedly found in the bag.

Post Miranda, Nielsen reportedly admitted taking the items from the victim’s house and admitted that the pills found in the patrol car were his.

Nielsen has been charged with grand theft of a controlled substance, grand theft, and seven counts of possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell. Nielsen has an unspecified criminal history in Georgia and is currently on probation in Georgia for aggravated assault and possession of a weapon by a convicted felon. Judge Thomas Jaworski set bail at $21,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.