Crime scene tape stretched across the front of a smoke shop at 103rd Street and Firestone Road on Jacksonville's Westside Friday morning after an armed robbery, with the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office launching an investigation into the holdup. A viewer shared a photo of the taped-off store, and a crew was sent to the scene to gather details as the investigation unfolded.
What We Know So Far
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office confirmed it is investigating an armed robbery at the smoke shop, according to Action News Jax, which reported having a crew at the scene Friday morning. Reporter Amanda Winkle, the outlet's digital content manager, wrote that the store had been taped off with crime scene tape following the robbery. Details on what was taken, whether anyone was hurt, or whether a suspect has been identified have not yet been released.
The location falls within JSO Patrol District 4, which covers the Westside, Avondale, and Ortega communities and runs its substation out of the Cedar Hills Shopping Center on Blanding Boulevard, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. The station said it would provide updates on the case during its noon broadcasts on CBS47 and Fox30.
A Corridor With a Violent Recent History
Friday's robbery adds to a string of violent and high-profile crimes along the 103rd Street business strip. In February, JSO officers arrested a suspect on 103rd Street after a violent carjacking ended in a crash, with an officer pulling a driver whose hair was on fire from the wreckage and rescuing a 1-year-old from the vehicle, per the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. That same month, JSO officers pursued a suspect at high speed on 103rd Street after an armed robber disarmed a security guard and fled a VyStar Credit Union branch with stolen cash in a pickup truck, according to Florida Scanner.
Smoke shops themselves have also drawn recent police attention across Jacksonville. In February, a robbery outside another smoke shop on Shirley Avenue in the Lakeshore area escalated into a double shooting that critically injured a store clerk in his 20s, News4JAX reported, forcing a nearby children's gymnastics meet to shut down for safety. And in April, JSO District 6 officers raided a smoke shop on Lem Turner Road, seizing multiple pounds of narcotics and cash while arresting dealers working out of the storefront, a bust Hoodline previously covered.
Retail Crime Has Cost Jacksonville Businesses Before
The 103rd Street corridor has seen commercial property crime escalate in other forms too. Back in January 2024, a group of teenagers rammed stolen vehicles through the front of a GameStop at 6733 103rd Street in a smash-and-grab heist that caused more than $50,000 in property damage, according to Action News Jax; JSO ultimately arrested five teens tied to similar car-ramming burglaries across Duval County. The Sheriff's Office's Economic Crimes Unit has also tracked organized retail theft losses in Jacksonville doubling from $250,000 in 2021 to $500,000 in 2022, per the same outlet's reporting.
Whether Friday's robbery is connected to any of these earlier Westside incidents remains an open question, and JSO has not indicated a link. Under Florida law, armed robbery involving a firearm is a first-degree felony punishable by up to life in prison, according to the Florida Senate, and the state's 10-20-Life sentencing statute mandates minimum prison terms starting at 10 years for producing a gun during the crime, rising to 20 years if it is fired and 25 years to life if someone is injured or killed, per the Brancato Law Firm.
Anyone with information about the robbery can contact First Coast Crime Stoppers, which offers anonymous cash rewards of up to $5,000 for tips leading to an arrest in Jacksonville-area felony cases. Action News Jax said it would continue providing updates on the investigation during its noon broadcasts on CBS47 and Fox30.
