By Terry Witt – Spotlight Senior Reporter

Former Levy County commissioner Ryan Bell avoided prosecution on two felony theft charges last week when the Assistant State Attorney Frank Slavichak declined to prosecute the case.

Bell, a candidate for the District 4 county commission post, was accused of stealing a pit bull puppy from his niece Kayla Bell and refusing to return it, an allegation he denied.

State Attorney Bill Cervone said Bell was charged by sworn complaint with felony grand theft and dealing in stolen property but the case was resolved when Bell returned the puppy to his niece.

“When the case came to us, he was told to give the dog back. Our lawyer told his lawyer to tell him to give the friggin’ dog back,” Cervone said.

The case was dismissed on April 17.

“He was charged. We declined to prosecute,” Cervone said.

Bell, of Chiefland, who was District 4 county commissioner from 2010 to 2014, lost to Lilly Rooks, of Cedar Key, by three votes. Rooks is the current commissioner representing District 4.

The two Republicans will meet again in the August primary along with fellow District 4 Republican Nathan Foote of Chiefland.

This wasn’t Bell’s first brush with the law.

In 1994 he and a group of young men were charged with transporting stolen farm equipment across state lines. The group was charged with felony crimes in two states. Bell was convicted in federal court of conspiracy and was sentenced to probation. His rights have been restored. He was never jailed.

He said the equipment thefts lasted for seven days. He was 18 when the thefts started and 19 when the case was resolved.

“I made a bad decision,” he said.

The latest criminal case stemmed from a March 16, 2018 report of a theft. Steven Whitby and Bell’s niece, Kayla Bell, told investigators the home they were buying from a Bell family member had been broken into on Feb. 6. They were not living at the residence at that time.

Kayla Bell and Whitby said they had been housing a red nose pitbull female at the home when they discovered that Kayla’s Uncle Ryan Bell had taken the puppy from the residence without permission, according to the Levy County Sheriff’s Office theft report. They said the puppy was worth $350.

Whitby told the sheriff’s investigator that Bell told him he had “saved” the puppy and insinuated he would return the dog when the home was cleaned up and the bills paid, the report said. Whitby said he later discovered that Bell had reportedly placed the dog with a new family.

Whitby said he was aware Ryan Bell was acting as the representative of the homeowner at the time the dog disappeared, but Whitby said Bell had no rights to the dog and no reason to take the dog without permission. Whitby was instructed to email the sheriff’s office copies of correspondence between himself and Ryan Bell indicating Bell had taken the dog.

Michael Bell, Ryan’s older brother, was present when Whitby and Kayla Bell were interviewed about the dog theft. Michael Bell, a former Levy County sheriff’s deputy, told the investigator he contacted his brother and requested that he reconsider his stance toward Kayla and Steven Whitby’s dog but his brother indicated he had already placed the dog with another family, the report said.

Whitby told the sheriff’s investigator before departing the scene of the interview that he and Kayla would not pursue charges against Ryan Bell if the dog was returned to them in the near future.

Ryan Bell, in an interview with Spotlight Friday, said he was falsely accused of stealing the dog. He called the whole incident “unfortunate.” Bell said he wasn’t forced into making a deal with the State Attorney to give the dog back or get prosecuted.

“There were no deals cut. My attorney said there is no way they are going to win. You can do the right thing and save the taxpayers money by not going to court or you can take it to court,” Bell said, quoting his attorney Michael O’Steen.

Bell said the home belonged to the family member he was representing and the family member, not him, removed the dog out of concern for its health. He said the dog was removed rather than report the condition of the animal to the county animal control service.

“Rather than report the animal to animal control we spent $750 in veterinary bills because the dog was malnourished,” Bell said.

He said he and the family member took care of the dog for 4 ½ months before allegations were made that the dog had been stolen.

Posted April 27, 2018