PALM COAST, Fla.,— A former Alabama State University basketball player from Miami had a ski mask and firearm when he crashed a dump truck stolen in Palm Coast into a barricade at Naval Station Mayport in Jacksonville, leaving behind a trail of accidents on Interstate 95, officials said.

Rodney Simeon was being held by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Department of Corrections on a $25,000 bond for charges filed by the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.

“This guy appeared to be on a mission and wasn’t going to let anyone or anything stand in his way,” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement. “We still do not know his intent or what caused him to steal a heavy-duty truck and try to force his way onto a Naval base. We appreciate the partnership with our neighboring agencies and our ability to work together to swiftly take this dangerous offender off the street.”

He is accused of grand theft of a motor vehicle and burglary of an occupied structure. An investigation is ongoing, and additional charges are possible.

A white F-350 dump truck equipped with GPS tracking was stolen from Corey Enterprises Lawn and Landscape Inc. at 14 Hargrove Grade in Palm Coast shortly after 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, investigators say.

Witnesses said a man they had never seen before walked into an employee-only area of the business, took the keys to the truck and left immediately.

He left behind his own car, a black Toyota Corolla with no tag, at the landscaping business. It was impounded as evidence.

Meanwhile, authorities tracked the stolen truck using the GPS technology.

The suspect drove the truck north on U.S. 1 before turning onto I-95 north, causing crashes on the highway in St. Johns and Duval counties, officials said.

GPS showed the truck idling at Naval Station Mayport in Jacksonville.

Military and Jacksonville Sheriff's Office officials deployed a barricade to prevent the truck from driving into the base.

"Officers discovered a ski mask and firearm believed to belong to the suspect inside the stolen truck," the Flagler Sheriff's Office said in a statement. "The suspect was taken into custody by JSO officers and military personnel and taken to a local hospital for a medical evaluation."

He was booked into jail after he was medically cleared.

The website for Alabama State University said Simeon led the basketball team in scoring at 12.2 points per game in 30 games with 25 starts during his junior season, 2016-2017.

Records show that he was arrested in Orange County on June 2 on charges of having 20 grams or less of cannabis, destruction of evidence, driving on a suspended license, and having no motor vehicle registration. Details of that arrest were not available Tuesday. He posted bond and was released from jail June 7.

The dump truck theft in Palm Coast comes just days after Flagler deputies used tire-deflating stop sticks on a U.S. Postal Service mail truck stolen in Holly Hill.

Rodney Simeon (Flagler County Sheriff's Office)
Rodney Simeon (Flagler County Sheriff's Office)