PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — A second person was arrested Wednesday after a minivan with a wheelchair-dependent man inside was stolen earlier this week in Port St. Lucie, police said.
Investigators said that the group home driver, Ernso Oge, 65, was arrested and faces a charge of neglect of a disabled adult. After the incident, the woman who runs Elite Group Home fired the driver, her husband.
Port St. Lucie police said Oge was driving a Dodge Caravan on Monday with a nonverbal, 55-year-old wheelchair-dependent man inside.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Oge stopped at a liquor store, left the vehicle running with the keys in the ignition and the doors unlocked.
Criminal Investigations Division Detectives have arrested the group home driver/employee, 65-year-old Ernso Oge, for neglect of a disabled adult. https://t.co/vi0kZ1VEhl
— Port St. Lucie PD (@PSLPolice) February 1, 2023
The report said that Oge bought two bottles of red wine, a bottle of Jack Daniel's and a bottle of brandy at the store.
While inside the store, the clerk alerted Oge that his vehicle was moving. He then left the liquor store, but the vehicle was already heading north on Bayshore Boulevard.
A detective later asked Oge if it was common practice and within company policy to conduct his "personal errands" with his employer's van. Oge said he was not permitted to do so.
The victim's brother, who didn't want to be named or go on camera, was asked what he thought when he learned what happened.
"Panic," he responded. "They have to find him quickly because he's on a feeding tube."
He has cerebral palsy and a bad case of coronavirus that left him wheelchair-bound.
The resident at the home for five years will remain there, which the brother "described as great. It's the best we've ever had."
He noted that Oge "was his favorite. He loved the guy. They got along great."
"A couple of three times a week they'd take him out," the brother said. "He goes to a store like a Walmart or goes bowling."
Police said the vehicle was stolen by John Peloquin, 46, who was looking to drive the vehicle back to his home in New Hampshire.
The vehicle with the wheelchair-dependent man still inside was located shortly after the theft.
Peloquin was arrested Tuesday and faces a charge of grand theft of a vehicle and abuse of a disabled adult.
Oge is being held on a $2,500 bond.