Man who allegedly stalked woman through store identified by SJCSO

ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — UPDATE: Jan. 19, 6 p.m.: SJCSO announced Sunday afternoon that the man seen in surveillance footage appearing to follow a woman through a store in Fruit Cove has been identified.

In the comment section of SJCSO’s Facebook post, the Sheriff’s Office said the man hasn’t been identified because he has not been charged with a crime, but detectives were still investigating as of Sunday evening.

Original Story: New video has been released of a suspicious incident at a local grocery store.

Action News Jax first told you Friday night about a mother who claimed she was being stalked at Publix.

Deputies released new video of the incident Saturday in hopes of identifying the man who scared this mom so much.

“He looked like he could’ve been my neighbor,” said the mother, who asked not to be named.

Video released Saturday by the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office shows a mother holding her 2-year-old child, then a man who appears to be following her.

Action News Jax Reporter Jamarlo Phillips spoke with the woman in the video. She said it was the scare of a lifetime.

“It was like a confirmed thing in my head that he had been almost hunting me and it was so scary,” she said.

The woman told Action News Jax this happened Wednesday at the Publix on State Road 13 in Fruit Cove.

She said the man waited for her to go through the checkout line, waited for her outside, then followed her to her car.

“I started ducking behind cars a little bit, where I can see him through the windows, and I actually could see him looking to the right, moving his head around trying to find me,” said the mother.

The woman told deputies she was able to hide from the man and quickly went back into the store to tell employees, but by the time they came out he was gone.

“The gentleman who walked me out to my car, he timestamped my receipt and went back and went on the footage and tracked down his picture," she said.

Deputies say this isn’t the only time they’ve heard of a man matching the same appearance following a woman around a store in the area.

“He needs to be caught. He needs help,” said neighbor Linda Scarceloa.

“Even if he is not physically doing anything that is breaking the law at this point, your ill intentions are still ill intentions, and I just don’t ever want to see any action being taken on that,” said the mother.

The mother said she wants her experience to serve as a reminder to other women to be careful and be aware of their surroundings.

Deputies said anyone who thinks they may know who the man in the video is should call the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office at 904-824-8304 or Crime Stoppers at 888-277-tips.

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