WINTER HAVEN, Fla. — An organized retail theft ring spanning more than a dozen counties "fenced," or resold, merchandise from grocery stores, pharmacies, and other businesses, the Polk County sheriff said Wednesday.
- Deputies: 6 arrested in connection to retail theft ring
- Polk Sheriff's Office, other agencies part of undercover probe
- Judd: As much as $2M in merchandise stolen statewide
According to Sheriff Grady Judd said the group may have stolen as much as $2 million worth of goods statewide..
The stores stolen from include Burlington, CVS, JC Penney, Publix, Walgreens, and Winn-Dixie.
Five people have been arrested, and a sixth is still being sought in connection to the thefts, Judd said.
"This is not some kid going in and stealing a single item," Judd said. "We found a group of individuals that were absolutely stealing everything they could get their hands on."
How it all worked
The investigation began in February, according to Judd. Polk detectives worked with loss prevention personnel at each store, as well as the Tampa Bay Regional Intelligence Center, Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, Tampa Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
According to affidavits, the six suspects targeted the stores four to five nights a week, hitting eight to 10 businesses a day. Of the 150 reported thefts in the state, at least 25 happened in Polk County.
"We know that they were stealing $10,000 to $15,000 worth of product every night," Judd explained.
The suspects took the stolen merchandise to several different locations and sold or "fenced" it, including by shipping stolen goods to Cuba, and profited from it, resulting in felony racketeering charges.
Among the locations where items were re-sold was a Tampa barbershop owned by Dayron Ramon Torres, 31, Torres rented a space in the shop to Reynel Hernandez Perdomo, 43, who used it to sell the stolen merchandise.
"Dayron also made [Reynel] sign a contract. That's at the same time Dayron was buying stolen property from Reynel," Judd explained. "Sorry, Dayron, it didn’t work."
Detectives also believe Perdomo coordinated with Danays Acosta Benitez, 34, the owner of a travel agency next door to the barbershop, Cuba la Bella, who used black bags to ship the stolen items to Cuba.
"[Benitez] said, 'I'm doing all this legally, shipping stuff,'" Judd said. "Well, no, you're not. We've watched you sell stolen property. We've watched you package stolen property. We've watched you ship to Cuba."
The suspects were arrested last week in Hillsborough or Polk County warrants and were recently transferred to the Polk County Jail.
Those arrested on May 3 were:
- 33-year-old Santiago Martinez Jorrin
- 47-year-old Tomas Rodriguez Oliva
- 43-year-old Reynel Hernandez Perdomo
- 31-year-old Dayron Ramon Torres
- 34-year-old Danays Acosta Benitez
Deputies are still searching for the 6th suspect, 32-year-old Michael Baladron Jimenez.
Four of the suspects who appeared in court Wednesday — Oliva, Torres, Perdomo, and Jorrin — have been released on bond.