Venezuelan national charged with stealing $1,250 in sunglasses from Bass Pro Shops

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Henyer Jose Rivero-Torres, 35, of Venezuela, was arrested on June 12 for driving without a valid license and subsequently charged with stealing sunglasses valued at $1,250 from Bass Pro Shops.

After Rivero-Torres was arrested for driving without a license, an Alachua County Sheriff’s (ASO) Detective determined that Rivero-Torres was the suspect in a May theft from Bass Pro Shops.

On May 15, the detective responded to a report that at about 11 a.m., a male suspect had walked around the Sunglass Outfitter’s kiosk at Bass Pro Shops and had taken six pairs of specialty sunglasses. The suspect moved to another area of the store and cut security devices off the sunglasses before leaving the store without paying for the sunglasses. The detective noted that the same suspect and a Hispanic female are believed to be repeat offenders at the store.

The Loss Prevention Officer provided a tag number that had been attached to two different vehicles at Bass Pro Shops: a Toyota Camry and a Toyota Highlander.

The detective noted that a University of Florida Police Department officer had stopped a Toyota Highlander with the same tag number on April 3 and reported that it was driven by Rivero-Torres. The officer issued a citation for attaching a tag that was not assigned to the vehicle and for driving without a valid license. The detective noted that the pictures from that officer’s body-worn camera looked like the suspect in the Bass Pro Shops theft.

The detective learned on June 12 that a car with the same tag had been pulled over by ASO, and the driver was arrested for driving without a valid license. The detective noted that photographs of Rivero-Torres’s shoes from the arrest were “clearly the same” as those worn by the Bass Pro Shops suspect.

The detective administered a photo lineup to the Bass Pro Shops LPO, and he identified Rivero-Torres as the suspect in the theft of the sunglasses.

The detective also noted that five anti-theft devices made from steel cables were found in the pocket of the pants that Rivero-Torres tried on after visiting the sunglasses kiosk.

Rivero-Torres has been charged with grand theft and five counts of destruction of loss prevention devices. He has no local criminal history, but he has a federal history from 2024. Judge Jonathan Ramsey set bail at $60,000, and Rivero-Torres is being held on a federal detainer.

ASO’s arrest forms do not have a field for citizenship status, and local court records are silent about Rivero-Torres’s citizenship status. He told Court Services that he has been in the area for about two years and is self-employed.

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.