A series of Davidson County locksmith robberies leads to an arrest.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – A 21-year-old Madison man is suspected of participating in a series of carjackings that targeted locksmiths in Davidson County, according to the Metro Nashville Police Department.

The last incident occurred on August 11.

According to an arrest report, Yanathan Furline is accused of stealing a car and robbing a locksmith at an apartment complex on East Thompson Lane.

The victim, who is a locksmith, was called by someone using the “Textnow” number. The person said a Ford F-150 needed to be recoded, according to the arrest report.

The victim told police that when she arrived at the scene, she was approached by two men who both had guns. The victim told police that the two men held her at gunpoint and forced her out of the minivan, then took her wallet, phone and $700 in cash.

The arrest report states that the two men drove away in a gray Ford F-150 and the victim’s minivan. Police said the minivan contained all the items needed to run a locksmith business, including spare car FOBs, a key cutting machine and a car FOB programmer.

The victim was able to locate his minivan and gave the information to police. Officers said they found the minivan at 400 Herron Drive, but the vehicle’s FOB programmer, the victim’s wallet and phone were missing. Officers said they also discovered a gray Ford F-150 had been stolen in Gallatin.

According to the arrest report, while this was happening, the victim received a notification that her Chase bank card was being used at a Walmart on Gallatin Pike in Madison. She later managed to ping her phone at the same location. Detectives went to the Walmart and discovered that the victim’s phone was at an EcoATM near customer service.

Detectives said they obtained Walmart surveillance footage that shows two suspects using an EcoATM to get cash in exchange for the victim’s phone. The footage also shows one of the suspects trying to use the victim’s card at Walmart gas stations, according to the arrest report.

Detectives said they worked with EcoATM to recover the victim’s phone and obtained information about the vendor who used his ID to sell the phone. Detectives said the ID used belonged to Yanathan Furline, 21, of Madison.

Furline was arrested on Monday, September 2, and is currently being held in the Davidson County Jail on $120,000 bail.

Police say Furline is a suspect in three prior car theft incidents and a locksmith robbery that occurred in Davidson County last year.

According to the police report, Furline had been released from the Davidson County Jail just 12 days before this latest incident.

Police have not revealed the identity of the second suspect in the case.

Copyright 2024 WSMV. All rights reserved.