DELTONA, FLORIDA: A Florida man, who wore the iconic ‘Scream’ mask while robbing stores in Deltona, has been arrested. The 21-year-old Andre Lee-Quan Parker was taken into custody by the deputies on Thursday, August 24.
He is the suspect in at least two robberies committed in Deltona — one at a Florida Pizza Hut outlet and a Circle K gas station store, per FOX 35.
Both locations that Parker hit are adjacent to each other.
How did the authorities arrest him?
On the night of August 24, the deputies executed a search warrant at his house, located less than a half-mile from the crime scene at both robberies.
While the Pizza Hut is on Providence Boulevard, the Circle K is on Elkcam Boulevard.
The authorities say that the police found the perpetrator’s ‘Scream’ mask, gloves, shoes, and black clothing in his trash. They also discovered a rifle in his bedroom.
They also found a woman’s wallet and a victim's ID card when they were searching Parker's trash.
Upon executing the search warrant, the authorities further recovered a backpack containing an HK .22 caliber rifle, ammunition, and blue latex gloves from the suspect's home.
The police also said that all the objects matched with witnesses’ description who claimed the robber wearing a ‘Scream’ mask and carried a rifle.
Initially, Parker denied the charges.
However, later he admitted that he had committed the aforementioned robberies and he was operating alone, with no accomplices.
Parker was taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail and charged with two counts of armed robbery. He was kept in custody with a bond amount totaling $60,000.
Criminal use of 'Scream' mask
The infamous mask from the popular franchise ‘Scream’ has long been a friend of lawbreakers and felons in order to remain anonymous during any criminal activity.
But the mask is used not just for heists and robberies but also for other transgressions.
For instance, in 2022, five daycare workers of the Lil' Blessings Child Care & Learning Center in Mississippi were arrested for using the ‘Scream’ masks to scare toddlers and little children.
Three videos of the daycare workers scaring the children went viral after which Sierra McCandless, Oci-Anna Kilburn, Jennifer Newman, and Shyenne Mills, and Traci Hutson were arrested.
Monroe County Sheriff's Department announced at that time that McCandless, Kilburn, Newman, and Mills were charged with three counts of felony child abuse.
Hutson, who was the seniormost of them was charged with failure to report abuse by mandatory reporter and simple assault, per Page Six.
The daycare owner Sheila Sanders later said to Monroe Journal, "The people that did those acts are no longer with us. They were fired."
She further explained, "I wasn't here at the time and wasn't aware they were doing that. I don't condone that and never have. I just want to say it's been taken care of."
