A 35-year-old Lady Lake man was hauled out of a Wildwood warehouse mid-shift Friday night after police discovered he was wanted on a felony warrant accusing him of molesting a child. Keith Robert Westmoreland was working inside the Charlotte Pipe and Foundry Company plant when Wildwood police officers arrived around 9:30 p.m. to take him into custody.
According to Villages-News.com, the Wildwood Police Department had received a report that an employee at the pipe plant, located at 4149 County Road 124A, had an active out-of-county warrant. A records check confirmed Westmoreland was wanted out of Lake County, and a manager at the facility confirmed he was working inside the warehouse at the time officers arrived.
The Lake County warrant, issued the day before the arrest, charged Westmoreland with two counts of lewd or lascivious molestation, the outlet reported. Sumter County booking records relayed via Facebook show he was officially logged into the Sumter County Detention Center on September 11, 2026, at 10:52 p.m. under booking number SCSO26JBN002770, with a status of no bond.
Firearm Pulled From His RAV4 in the Parking Lot
Officers also found a firearm inside Westmoreland's white 2024 Toyota RAV4, which was parked in the warehouse lot, per the same report. Police seized the weapon for safekeeping and placed it in an evidence locker rather than leaving it in the vehicle.
That step touches on Florida Statute § 790.251, known as the Preservation and Protection of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms in Motor Vehicles Act, which generally bars employers from restricting workers from keeping legally owned firearms locked inside their private vehicles on workplace property, according to The Florida Senate. The report describes the warrant arrest and firearm seizure but does not state whether the statute factored into the arrest.
What the Charges Could Mean
Under Florida Statute § 800.04(5), lewd or lascivious molestation committed by an adult against a child under age 12 is a life felony carrying a minimum mandatory 25 years in prison, while molestation involving a victim between 12 and 15 years old is charged as a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years, per The Florida Senate. The sources do not identify the alleged victim's age.
The statute also operates under strict liability regarding a victim's age, meaning a defendant cannot claim as a defense that they did not know the victim's age or that the minor consented, according to the Jeff T. Gorman Law Offices. That legal standard underscores the steep evidentiary bar facing anyone charged under the law, regardless of the specific circumstances alleged.
Held Without Bond, Awaiting Transfer
Westmoreland was booked into the Sumter County Detention Center in Bushnell, which serves as the central intake facility for all municipal and state law enforcement agencies operating in Sumter County, according to the Sumter County Sheriff's Office. The warrant originated in Lake County, and Westmoreland was held without bond. Villages-News.com reported he was pending transfer to the Lake County Jail.
The exact allegations underlying the Lake County warrant, along with the timeline for Westmoreland's transfer, remain open questions. The passage also refers to the Sumter County Sheriff's Office and Powell Road in Wildwood.
The Plant Where He Was Working
The arrest played out at a facility with deep roots in Wildwood's industrial base. Charlotte Pipe and Foundry's Wildwood plant originally opened in 1999 and operates as part of an eight-plant national manufacturing network spanning seven states, according to ASPE Pipeline. The site completed an expansion in June, the trade publication reported.
Founded in 1901 in Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte Pipe and Foundry is more than a century old, per ASPE Pipeline. The Wildwood plant supplies commercial and residential plumbing demand across Florida and the Southeast.
