Grand theft charge dropped in Pinellas jewelry theft case
PINELLAS COUNTY (FOX 13) - For months, we've been covering the case of Scott Mitchell versus Mary Hunt. Mitchell, of Palm Harbor, had accused his ex-fiancee' of stealing millions dollars worth of jewelry and gold from his home.
Monday, the State Attorney's Office in Pinellas County dropped the grand theft charge against Hunt. The high-profile case, which included videos of the couple during outrageous fights, has gotten attention around the country. But, the court battle isn't over yet.
Mitchell and Hunt were engaged to be married. But, when the wedding was called off, things got nasty. The he-said she-said drama of the case is nothing short of a Lifetime Movie.
"Scott Mitchell made these charges up to frame Mary Hunt all because she broke up with him and broke the marriage off," said Hunt's attorney Barry Cohen.
Their relationship went from engagement photos to booking photos. In August 2015, Mitchell accused his ex-fiancee' of breaking into his Palm Harbor home and stealing $2 million dollars worth of diamonds, jewels and gold.
Hunt claimed it was all a lie, retaliation from a relationship filled with manipulation and abuse. "What I did wrong was stay with him for as long as I did," Hunt said in a June interview.
Hunt showed cell phone video of an enraged Mitchell, kicking her out of his home, tearing her clothes and charging at her.
Mitchell responded by sharing surveillance video showing Hunt in a fit of rage, kicking, screaming and hitting herself
"There is no evidence that he ever beat her," said Mitchell's attorney Todd Foster in August. "This video now demonstrates that she is striking herself in the same area of the face and head that they allege Scott struck her."
In June, the U.S. attorneys office decided not to prosecute the case. And on Monday, the State Attorney's Office in Pinellas County also dropped all charges. It's yet another correct decision, according to Cohen.
"He's very smart, very wealthy, very charismatic, very diabolical and very emotionally crippled," Cohen said about Mitchell. "She'll end up having the last laugh. That's way the system is
supposed to work and it's working."
The saga doesn't end here. Mitchell is suing Hunt and her parents for civil theft in federal court. Foster is banking on an audio recording of Michael Hunt, Mary's father, saying that Mary and her mother, Linda shipped the jewelry to Virginia, as it was alleged at the beginning.
Michael hunt: "I know what they did. I know what they did. They sent me a box of
F******* gold and f****** jewels. Now they're lying mother f******."
Foster said he's looking forward to taking sworn statements from the three defendants who, as court records show, previously invoked the fifth amendment a combined 600 times.
Cohen tells us he's feeling plenty confident heading into federal court. "We've hit two home runs already and we've got this federal court case which we've got some great judges in and we will be alright," Cohen said.