MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — A southwest Miami-Dade man is facing two felony charges after authorities said a sheriff’s deputy caught him stealing avocados from a farm in the rural Redland area early Monday morning.

According to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, Edel Perez had hundreds of pounds of stolen avocados in bags and in the trunk of his Mercedes-Benz.

An MDSO arrest report states that a deputy patrolling the area of Southwest 217th Avenue and 320th Street saw the car parked on the shoulder in front of the avocado grove at around 2:30 a.m. and investigated further.

The report states the deputy saw Perez, 29, “dressed in all black clothing (and) picking avocados” from the farm, owned by Grove Services Incorporated.

Deputies said they found black bags filled with avocados and found more in his trunk. They estimated that Perez, who they said was entering the farm through a hole cut in its fence, had about 400 pounds worth of the fruit.

The report states that Perez told deputies that "he realizes he was taking something that did not belong to him, however, he has no employment and two kids and was planning to sell the avocados on the street to buy his children Christmas presents."

Deputies arrested Perez on charges of third-degree grand theft and trespassing on an agricultural site.

As of Monday afternoon, Perez was being held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a $5,000 bond.

Man caught stealing 400 pounds of avocados from Redland farm, deputies say

About The Author

Chris Gothner