MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A Miami-Dade County employee was arrested Thursday in connection with a nearly year-long crime spree in which he allegedly stole tires and rims off dozens of vehicles, authorities said.
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According to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, Clifton Thomas Silimon, 52, of Miami, has been linked to more than 40 cases throughout the county, spanning from June 2024 to May 2025.
“Through investigative means, detectives were able to establish that, during the hours of 2:00 a.m. through 5:00 a.m., Mr. Silimon had been removing rims and tires from vehicles, sometimes causing damage to those vehicles,” an MDSO press release stated.
According to an arrest report, he often targeted Nissan, Honda, Lexus and Infiniti vehicles.
Detectives with MDSO’s Hammocks District Auto Theft Squad (ATS) eventually identified Silimon as a suspect in the cases and began surveilling him.
According to the report, detectives spotted Silimon in his 2021 Nissan Maxima on May 17, but he fled from them, abandoning his vehicle.
Detectives obtained a search warrant for the vehicle and found multiple tools that are used to remove vehicle tires, including a breaker bar, several bags containing wheel locks, vehicle lug nuts and spray paint, which they believe was used to damage and obscure surveillance cameras that had been installed in some of the vehicles that were targeted.
According to the report, Silimon had a registered tracking device inside his vehicle which revealed that his vehicle was at the scene of each crime on the date and time frame in question.
Detectives said Silimon was apprehended Thursday and invoked his right to remain silent.
He faces charges of grand theft of motor vehicle parts and criminal mischief.
As of Friday, he was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center
While detectives confirmed that Silimon is a county worker, his exact job title was not immediately known.
Local 10 News has reached out to the county for comment and is awaiting a response.