WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – Authorities arrested a 45-year-old Winter Haven man wanted in connection with an August burglary Tuesday night after a detective stopped him for riding a bicycle without lights, they said.
Polk County Sheriff’s Office detectives took Derek Edward Sasser into custody on October 20, 2026, along southbound US 27. When the detective initiated the traffic stop for missing bicycle lights, he recognized Sasser, previously identified as a suspect in an open theft case.
According to investigators, the case began on August 3, 2026, when a resident reported an electric bicycle valued at $800 stolen from a residence in the Hidden Cove neighborhood, off Lucerne Park Road in Winter Haven. During a subsequent canvas of the surrounding area, a detective retrieved security video from a nearby park that captured images of the suspect…