Some people can take their hobbies a little too seriously! In June of 1984, two Pensacola teenagers broke into the Sportland News Company on South Palafox Street. The two would-be burglars made off with over 500 comic books, many of which were rare and valuable.

Rather than making off with their loot, one of the teenagers returned to the newsstand concerned that they had left fingerprints behind. To deal with this small inconvenience, the youth decided to set the shop on fire!

It did not take long for authorities to track down the culprits and recover the comic books. The two young men were convicted and sentenced to some quiet reading time alone.

Credits and Sources:

UWF Historic Trust Archives