Man may lose $25K by reporting murderer to 911

A pawn shop manager who alerted authorities to the location of a man accused of killing a Florida Sheriff's deputy might not be eligible for a $25,000 reward because he dialed 911, instead of calling the Crime Stoppers hot line.

Scott Kelly, the manager of the Uptown Pawn and Jewelry shop in Hollywood, dialed 911 in November, 2007 after a customer told him convicted robber Michael Mazza was sitting in a car parked outside the store.

"When you hear there's a dangerous criminal outside your door, you don't go to Google to see what number you should call. You call 911, and that's what I did," Kelly said. He said Crime Stoppers has told him they have to review his reward claim because he did not call them.

Crime Stoppers posted the $25,000 reward on Mazza's capture after police said the 40-year-old convicted felon fatally shot 76-year-old Broward County Sheriff's Deputy Paul Rein while being escorted to court. Crime Stoppers is a private organization and not affiliated with the police department.

Mazza has been arrested 13 times in Florida since 1990. He was sentenced to life in prison in August for the armed robbery of a drugstore. (info from WPBF TV)