Deltona Man Arrested for 2 Gas Station Robberies

The Volusia Sheriff’s Office has arrested 20-year-old Dylan Hope for two gas station robberies they say he committed, the agency announced Tuesday. Hope is accused of having hit two Deltona Circle K locations: one at 2196 Howland Blvd and another at 2720 Elkcam Blvd. The first call came in at around 1:45 am on Tuesday, when a clerk at the Howland Blvd station told the VSO he’d been handed a note telling him to turn over money or be shot. The clerk didn’t follow the instructions, and the individual in question was said to have then left. Just minutes after this first incident, a VSO deputy drove to the other Circle K station on Elkcam Blvd. He reportedly saw the clerk trying to run outside before being grabbed by his neck and dragged back inside by the suspect. The clerk was fortunately able to escape out of the back. Multiple deputies responded, the VSO said, issuing commands to the suspect. Though he was inside, the suspect could be seen through the glass door. He complied with deputies’ instructions and was arrested without any further incident. According to the VSO’s account of the incident, Hope told them he’d grabbed onto the clerk because he was still in the process of trying to concoct a better escape plan. Hope was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail on Tuesday, where he remains on no bond. He’s been charged with two counts of petty theft, two counts of armed robbery, plus one count each of false imprisonment, armed kidnapping, and written threats to kill or inflict bodily injury.