BUNNELL, Fla. — Kermit Booth — a Flagler County fugitive from justice who was arrested in North Carolina, released on bail, then arrested again — is finally back in Florida to be held accountable for his crimes.
On Friday, September 5, Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly and members of the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office traveled to Franklin, North Carolina, to take custody of Booth after he was rearrested on Wednesday by the Macon County Sheriff’s Office on a governor’s warrant and then held at the Macon County Detention Center while awaiting extradition to Florida.
Booth’s return to Florida is the culmination of a six-week process after he was first arrested in North Carolina on August 1 on a Flagler County warrant for two counts of sexual battery on a person less than 12 years of age.
“It took a few weeks, but we were finally able to get this pervert on a plane and bring him back to Flagler County. After the governor’s warrant was issued and he was rearrested and held this time, and after North Carolina courts said we could extradite him, we flew up and brought him back,” said Sheriff Staly. “I hope he enjoyed his flight back to Florida because it’ll probably be the last flight he takes. Hopefully, he’ll be spending the rest of his life in prison.”
Upon returning to Flagler County Friday evening, Sheriff Staly personally escorted Booth to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility and served the warrant. Booth is being held on a $500,000 bond on two capital crime charges with a penalty of life in prison.
“I would like to thank Governor DeSantis and North Carolina Governor Stein for their assistance in getting the governor’s warrant, as well as Macon County Sheriff Holbrooks and his team for quickly rearresting Booth so we could bring him back to Florida. I especially want to thank the Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson for providing a forestry aircraft for Booth’s quick extradition back to Flagler County,” Sheriff Staly added. “While our efforts today cannot erase the deep emotional scars that this pervert caused, it is my hope that his victim may now begin the healing process knowing that justice is finally coming.”
