Corvette-driving ‘Flip Flop Bandit’ took only expensive golf clubs, Florida cops say

A crime spree involving pricey golf clubs came to a surprising conclusion when deputies discovered their suspect — the so-called “Flip Flop Bandit” — was a “clean-cut” nurse at the local children’s hospital, Florida investigators say.

The Corvette-driving “bandit” was caught at noon on May 22 as he walked out of a Dick’s Sporting Goods in Davenport with a Scotty Cameron putter valued at $500, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

A background check on the 39-year-old man revealed he is a registered nurse at Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando, officials said.

“This guy is a nurse there, but he’s also a thief,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said in a video posted May 24 on Facebook.

“Over the past month or so, he stole $3,000 worth of golf clubs. ... We call him the ‘Flip-Flop Bandit.’ That’s right, because as we investigated it, he was always wearing his flip flips.”

The total is actually closer to $3,700, records show.

This includes multiple thefts on May 5 and May 9, according to an affidavit. In one instance, the suspect visited the store three times in one day, and walked out each time with the head of a golf club stuffed in his pants, officials said.

Surveillance shows he left the parking lot in a Corvette on two occasions, and then a white Jeep Wrangler, officials said.

Investigators did not reveal what the man intended to do with the golf clubs and club heads, but noted he “likes to play through at Dick’s.”

The suspect faces felony charges of dealing in stolen property, coordinating a retail theft of over $3,000 and possession or use of an anti-shoplifting or inventory control device, officials said. Bond was set at $45,000.

Davenport is about a 65-mile drive northeast of Tampa.

This story was originally published May 30, 2024 at 4:33 AM with the headline "Corvette-driving ‘Flip Flop Bandit’ took only expensive golf clubs, Florida cops say."