Florida prowler hit with murder rap in slay of active-duty Coast Guard member, 27, who confronted him when he tried to break into her house
Caroline Shollaert, 27, had served in the U.S. Coast Guard for eight years. She was stationed in Jacksonville, Florida, with the HITRON unit
A suspected serial car thief was charged Tuesday in the heinous murder of a 27-year-old U.S. Coast Guard member who was trying to stop him outside her Florida home.
Tyree Parker, 22, allegedly used the gun he stole from an unlocked vehicle to fatally shoot Caroline Schollaert in the early morning hours of Aug. 3, cops in Jacksonville said.
Parker is suspected of having committed eight auto burglaries in the city's Riverside neighborhood that day, with one of the homes' surveillance cameras catching him prowling the driveways.
Schollaert spotted Parker trying to break into her car and pulled out a weapon to confront him, cops said.
The two engaged in an armed standoff as she kept ordering him to stay still and wait for police, officials said.
Parker pulled the trigger, striking Schollaert several times and killing her, said Jacksonville Sherriff's Office Chief of Investigations T.K. Waters.
Waters said the firearm Parker used to allegedly kill Schollaert had been stolen from an unlocked vehicle in the neighborhood 11 days before the incident.
Tyree Parker, 22, was arrested for the murder of Caroline Shollaert. Police believe he had burglarized eight cars in the Riverside neighborhood in Jacksonville.
'So what was originally a crime of opportunity, in the burglary of a vehicle, escalated in seconds, resulted in the violent killing of a woman who dedicated her life to serving her country as a petty officer in the United States Coast Guard,' Waters said during a press conference.
Following a weeklong search, police acquired an arrest warrant and said Parker surrendered himself into police custody.
He was charged with second-degree murder and is being held in the Duval County jail without bond.
His first appearance is set for Aug. 11.
Schollaert served in the U.S. Coast Guard for eight years and was stationed at the HITRON unit in Jacksonville, a specialized helicopter squadron dedicated to drug interdictions, NEWS 4 Jax reports.
“She maintained those fast helicopters that chase those drug-running boats that go real fast,” her father, Patrick Schollaert told NBC 12. “They’ve got better toys and better choppers that go even faster. She made sure they were in tip-top shape.”
Schollaert family described her as a kind and caring person who served her country
Schollaert's unit is in charge of chasing down and apprehending drug-smuggling boats
Parker was caught on surveillance on the day of Schollaert's murder
Parker allegedly tried to steal from Schollaert's car outside her home when she called police
He added that she had also begun a support group for women in the Coast Guard.
A memorial for Schollaert was held at Cecil Airport on Tuesday, with more than 100 Coast Guard members gathering to honor the slain member before her body was sent home to Powhatan County, Virginia.
'Maybe it will be a little ease on her family to come here, to take their daughter back home,' said neighbor Kenneth Reed.
Shollaert joined the U.S. Coast Guard right out of high school. Police say she was armed when she confronted Parker, who was also carrying a handgun
Schollaert, second from the right, is pictured with her helicopter squadron
Schollaert's father said she loved helicopters and worked hard to maintain them for her crew