AED Theft Shock: Man Tries to Sell Stolen Defibrillators on Facebook

Really? Someone stole an AED? Imagine you’re enjoying a sunny Southwest Florida day at your favorite park. Birds chirping, kids playing, life is good. Then boom — your chest tightens, vision blurs, and you collapse like a Florida lawn chair. This is where the AED (Automated External Defibrillator) comes in to save the day. That is... if some genius hasn’t stolen it and listed it on Facebook Marketplace like it’s a used lawnmower.

Yep, that’s exactly what 20-year-old Jace E. Johnson allegedly did. According to Gulf Coast News, this walking cautionary tale swiped AED units from Sugden Regional Park and East Naples Community Park — life-saving equipment, mind you — and tried flipping them online for $300 each.

Here’s where the story gets even more cartoonish: he actually posted photos of the AEDs with visible serial numbers. The same serial numbers reported missing from the parks. So not only was he allegedly stealing equipment meant to save lives, but he also made zero attempt to cover his tracks. This isn’t Ocean’s Eleven — it’s Florida Man with a Wi-Fi connection and no common sense.

Detectives, with the easiest police work of the year, reached out to Johnson pretending to be interested in recovering the devices. He agreed to meet and led them straight to his girlfriend’s house, where the AEDs were being stored like trophies of stupidity.

When asked how he got the devices, Jace clammed up and said he didn’t want to talk anymore. Probably wise — not like he was winning any Mensa awards before that.

He’s now facing two counts of grand theft and was booked into the Naples Jail Center, where I assume there are plenty of defibrillators... and no Wi-Fi access.

So next time you’re at the park, fingers crossed the AED is still on the wall and not in someone’s sketchy Facebook listing between a used kayak and a suspiciously cheap Roomba.