Three Orlando residents arrested for allegedly stealing diesel fuel and credit card information

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

Jose Luis Hernandez Verano, 48; Alfredo Quintana Marrero, 43; and Leonardo Valdes Cordero, 27, all of Orlando, were arrested yesterday as part of an ongoing Florida Department of Agriculture (FDACS) investigation into an organized criminal enterprise.

FDACS agents identified three pickup trucks in several incidents of fuel theft in the Central Florida area, using counterfeit credit cards, card skimmers, and devices that alter the fuel dispensing pulsar that controls the flow of fuel from the fuel dispensing pump. The trucks are modified with gasoline bladders, each holding about 300 gallons, to transport the stolen fuel. The three men were allegedly seen stealing 1,478 gallons of diesel in Hillsborough County and 1,328 gallons of diesel from Sumter County.

Yesterday morning at 10:30 a.m., Gainesville Police Officers assisted FDACS agents who were watching pickup trucks parked at diesel pumps at the Circle K at 1515 N. Main Street, where the men were pumping fuel. Quintana Marrero and Hernandez Verano were detained, but Valdes Cordero allegedly drove away east on NE 16th Avenue and was eventually stopped in the 600 block of NE 16th Avenue.

When agents inspected one of the gas pumps the defendants were using, they allegedly found a pulsar device inside the pump. Agents reported that the bottom security panel had been removed so the device could be placed inside the pump. One truck, registered to Quintana Marrero, allegedly had multiple 300-gallon gas bladders that were full. Multiple skimmers and gas pump keys were allegedly found in a sunglasses case in the cab of the truck.

Quintana Marrero and Hernandez Verano allegedly had multiple plain gift cards in their possession, with small amounts on them that are normally used for false gas purchases, according to the FDACS agents. The Circle K clerk reportedly said that no purchase was recorded for the pump used by Quintana Marrero, although he was allegedly pumping gas from it.

Officers also found a third truck parked nearby that was also outfitted with multiple gas bladders and a hollowed-out rear seat used for storing gas. A note pad was reportedly found in this truck with seven pages (141 entries) documenting gas that was purchased and sold. This truck was insured in the name of Quintana Marrero.

An FDACS agent reported that they had been following all three trucks during the day and that the defendants had “proceeded to complete the same scam” at a gas station in Silver Springs. The agent also reportedly had surveillance photos from the gas stations in Hillsborough and Sumter Counties, in which the three defendants are seen with the same pickup trucks stealing gas on March 9 and March 11.

All three have been charged with a racketeering violation from GPD and assorted Fish and Wildlife Commission charges, with further charges pending search warrants of the six cell phones collected and after calculating the value of the stolen fuel.

Hernandez Verano is being held on $15,000 bail, Quintana Marrero is being held on $40,000 bail, and Valdes Cordero is being held on $10,000 bail.

Another Orlando man, 37-year-old Francisco Medina Rodriguez, was recently arrested in Miami on an Alachua County warrant on similar charges and transported to the Alachua County Jail on March 16. Rodriguez was arrested on February 13, 2019, on I-75 for having illegal window tint and an expired tag. A subsequent search of the truck reportedly found 22 fraudulent credit cards and a “large manufactured fuel tank” in the back of the pickup truck containing diesel fuel. Rodriguez was released on bail and failed to appear for a November 2019 hearing. He is being held on $1,000,000 bail.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.