MIAMI — Two South Florida neighbors who said they were assisting in cleanup after Hurricane Ian were arrested Sunday after they were caught stealing from a business in storm-stricken Lee County, according to deputies.
Ernesto Heriberto Pedroso Martinez, 34, and Noel Morales, 54, of South Miami-Dade are facing charges of grand theft of over $750 but less than $5,000. The men — who live in the same neighborhood just outside Florida City — remained in custody of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office as of Monday afternoon, jail records show.
According to the men’s arrest reports, a shop owner who wasn’t identified by the sheriff’s office had left a white refrigerator, screen doors and aluminum fence panels — valued at over $1,500 — in front of his business due to water damage from Ian. When the owner got to the shop, he received a phone call from a person who said they saw two men taking the property and loading it into a trailer attached to their truck.
