Police nab man accused of stealing from race car drivers, teams

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — A man is jailed in Daytona Beach, accused of stealing credit cards and ID cards from a race team at the Daytona International Speedway.

Police believe actor Patrick Dempsey, who has a race team, is just one of thousands of victims who range from race car drivers to pit crew members.

Detectives said Steven Sanders was caught on a cellphone video by a race fan. He was seen stepping out of an RV at a race in Gainesville and wiping the door with a rag.

According to Daytona Beach Police, the Secret Service, and agencies across the country are finding out that Sanders stole from thousands of people.

"All at speedways, all where he's taken wallets, watches, cash, credit cards," said Detective Scott Frantz of the Daytona Beach Police Dept.

Police said they believe he got away with it for years.

Sanders was arrested in March, a few hours after a race fan shot the video of him in Gainesville.

Detectives said they have counted 43 victims from Daytona International Speedway.

Police found the racing ID of Patrick Dempsey, who races in the Rolex 24 at Daytona, in Sanders' possession.

"I can't understand why he kept that stuff, but he did," said Frantz.

Daytona police and the Secret Service searched Sanders' home in Macon, Ga.

Investigators said they found Rolex watches, cash, credit cards, SocialSsecurity cards, and $130,000 in unused gift cards.

"We've traced a majority of this stuff back to victims who had documented this stuff getting stolen, again, at raceways across the country and here in Daytona Beach," said Frantz.

Sanders even had a journal where he kept an inventory of things he stole.

 He faces a long list of charges and is jailed on an $80,000 bond.

Police said Sanders is facing more charges, many from out of state, and he could have more than a dozen agencies wanting to extradite him.

WFTV