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A Florida man with a penchant for pilfering found himself in hot water after his thieving spree was captured on camera, leading to his eventual arrest. The Cape Coral Police Department shared video evidence that was instrumental in catching the culprit, who made off with $2,000 worth of ventilation equipment on March 11.
Authorities responded to a theft report at a storage facility located on NE Pine Island Road in Cape Coral. The call came at about 1:20 p.m., setting off a chain of events that would unravel the morning’s crime.
According to the investigation, the equipment—specifically heating, ventilation, and air conditioning apparatus—had been surreptitiously taken from a company vehicle earlier in the day and stowed away at the storage facility.
The plot thickened when officers reviewed surveillance footage that placed Cristian Kevin Felipe Ramos, a 23-year-old employee of a Fort Myers HVAC service company, at the scene. Ramos was spotted driving a company-marked van into the storage premises around 6:30 a.m., a key piece of evidence in the case.
The video further revealed Ramos stepping out of the van to meet several individuals, with whom he proceeded to offload multiple items into nearby storage units, sealing his fate as the prime suspect in the theft.
“Footage also showed Ramos picking his nose as the storage facility’s gate opened,” the police department said in a Facebook post. “Detectives later confronted Ramos with this footage, where he acknowledged he was the driver of the work van arriving at the storage facility.”
Investigators said they recovered HVAC materials, including flex ducting, mastic buckets, straps and insulated boards.
CCPD said its officers executed a search warrant and recovered the stolen property, identifying that it belonged to the employer.
Ramos acknowledged being at the store facility, but he denied removing any equipment, according to the police department.
Ramos was arrested at a business on Del Prado Boulevard and charged with grand theft.