FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — A Palm Coast man was arrested after deputies say he tracked and followed a former acquaintance around Flagler County, threatened her, and stole a keepsake containing her sons’ ashes.
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said Justin Fountain, 31, was arrested Saturday, after an investigation involving the Flagler Beach Police Department.
Authorities said Fountain used a GPS tracking device to monitor the woman’s location and repeatedly contacted her after she asked him to stop.
Deputies responded to the Flagler Beach Police Department after the woman reported that Fountain, whom she had met through a dating app, had become increasingly controlling and aggressive.
According to investigators, the woman ended contact with Fountain, but he later showed up uninvited at her workplace.
She told him to leave her alone, but when she returned to the hotel where she had been staying, she found Fountain’s vehicle in the parking lot.
The woman then left the area and went to Culver’s to meet with a friend, but deputies said Fountain followed her there and attempted to speak with her. She again told him to leave her alone.
The woman later went to Flagler Beach in an effort to get away from Fountain.
While there, she received alerts that someone had accessed her social media accounts.
She told deputies she had not given Fountain permission to access those accounts and believed he gained access while she was sleeping.
Investigators said Fountain sent the woman more than 100 text messages in the hours following the incidents.
Those messages allegedly included threats intended to stop her from contacting law enforcement.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, Fountain told the woman she would be arrested on a warrant if she contacted police and sent additional threatening messages, including, “You need to answer my calls if you know what’s good for you” and “I’m going to destroy you.”
Deputies said Fountain also admitted in text messages that he had taken a teddy bear containing the woman’s son’s ashes and threatened to burn it if she continued ignoring him.
Through investigative efforts, deputies located Fountain traveling north on Interstate 95 and conducted a traffic stop. Fountain told deputies he was headed to Georgia.
A search of his vehicle led deputies to the stolen teddy bear containing the ashes, which was later returned to the victim.
Fountain was arrested and charged with aggravated stalking, extortion, and hindering communication with law enforcement.
The Flagler Beach Police Department also charged him with unauthorized installation of a tracking device and accessing an electronic device without authority.
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly praised the victim for reporting the alleged stalking despite the threats.
“Be extremely careful who you give access to your life,” Staly said. “Your cell phone, laptop and residence hold banking info, social media accounts, and cherished memories. Evil, jealous and cruel men like Fountain will use anything to control their victims, including extorting them with their most personal and emotional memories.”
Fountain was transported to the Florida County jail where he is being held without bond.
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