A Mt. Hermon man who is an inmate in the Washington Parish jail was arrested again Thursday and charged in an automobile theft.

Chief Deputy Mike Haley of the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office said that Ronderrick D. Brown, 23, of Pin Oak Road in Mt. Hermon, was originally arrested Jan. 5 and charged with being a fugitive from Tangipahoa Parish and for being in possession of stolen property. Since that time, he has remained in the Washington Parish Jail with no bond.

His charges abruptly changed Friday, when he was arrested again for an earlier theft of an automobile.

Haley said that Brown’s latest arrest was the result of an investigation into an automobile theft in Franklinton. The stolen vehicle contained an iPad with a built-in tracking device.

Haley said that when the device was turned on, detectives were able to pinpoint the iPad at Brown’s residence. Detectives went to the residence and located the vehicle near Brown’s residence, where it had been hidden in the woods. Fingerprints taken from the vehicle were sent to the crime lab and identified as belonging to Brown, Haley said.

“Our detectives did an outstanding job investigating this automobile theft,” Sheriff Randy Seal said. “In this case, they did not have far to go to locate Brown since he was already locked up in our jail. This new charge certainly increases his chance of getting a longer sentence when convicted.”