Stolen Silverado Was Only the Beginning of What Investigators Found in Ex-Cop’s Possession in Georgia
www.motorbiscuit.com, Saajan Jogia, September 22, 2026
A former police officer in Georgia has been arrested after investigators connected him to a stolen Chevrolet Silverado, a stolen trailer, a lawn mower, and two tablets belonging to another police department.
Dereck Thomas, 33, of Kingsland, was arrested and charged after the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) investigated stolen vehicles and property. Thomas, who was employed by the Kingsland Police Department when investigators stopped him, has been charged with multiple offenses stemming from the investigation.
The investigation uncovered the stolen property after Thomas was stopped at an inspection station in Yulee, Florida, on June 25, 2026. According to the GBI, he was driving a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado that had reportedly been stolen from Bennett Chrysler in Kingsland. He was also pulling a trailer that had been reported stolen from the Camden County School System.
The trailer contained another piece of stolen property: a lawn mower that had been reported stolen from the Bennett Chevrolet dealership lot in Kingsland. Investigators also found two tablets in Thomas’ possession that belonged to the Glynn County Police Department.
Although Thomas was still employed by the Kingsland Police Department when the traffic stop occurred, he was not working at the time. The department later terminated his employment.
The case had begun more than a year earlier. On November 26, 2024, the Kingsland Police Department requested the GBI’s assistance in investigating the theft of a truck from Bennett Chrysler. That investigation ultimately led authorities to the stop and the additional property connected to the case.
Thomas turned himself in on September 16, 2026, and was booked into the Camden County Jail. The GBI charged him with three counts of Felony Theft by Receiving, along with one count each of Felony Theft by Taking, Felony Removal or Falsification of Identification Number, Filing False Documents, and Violation of Oath of Office.
The investigation is still ongoing. The GBI said its case file will be submitted to the Brunswick Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for review after the investigation is completed. Authorities are also asking anyone with relevant information to contact the GBI’s Regional Investigative Office in Kingsland or the Kingsland Police Department.