Tampa-area cigar thief caught, with one still at large

[SkinsFanLarry]

One of the pair of intrepid thieves who broke into the smoking lounge of the Gaspar Cigar Shoppe in Tampa, Florida and pilfered an estimated $15,000 worth of cigars, liquor and other property from 18 of the 88 private lockers there has been arrested.

Eighteen-year-old Jeremia Martinez-Cotto of Tampa was arrested on July 8 (four days after the break-in) and charged with seven counts of burglary, three counts of grand theft, five counts of criminal mischief, four counts of petty theft and one count for the fraudulent use of a credit card.

Martinez-Cotto was arrested without incident, according to the Tampa police, who told the Tampa Tribune that he admitted to the crimes and had thrown away some of the stolen merchandise. However, he had a cigar and a humidor in his home at the time he was apprehended. When police arrived, led by fingerprints recovered from the crime scene, he fled in a car, but was stopped and arrested.

The second suspect, also caught on the store’s surveillance tape, is still at large. The Tribune reported that Martinez-Cotto was taken to Orient Road Jail with bail set at $25,500.

 

[mcroom]

I am glad to hear they have caught him and I hope they get the other guy too. We might see them on "Worlds Dummest Criminals".

 

[Phi Delt]

....told the Tampa Tribune that he admitted to the crimes and had thrown away some of the stolen merchandise. However, he had a cigar and a humidor in his home at the time he was apprehended...

bastid. Probably threw away the good stuff, too. that's what f'ing pisses me off about idiots like this.

My neighbour's SUV was broken into a few weeks ago right in her driveway. Tossed a rock through her passenger window. grabbed some change and a pair of cheap sunglasses.

total damage from this 5lb rock.....$4,000.00

The rock hit her gear shift, console, and something else inside. $4,000 worth of damage for what she said was about $25 in change and sunglasses. Nice, eh.

 

[blooz4u]

Hopefully, this guy will rat out his buddy. Anyone else think the bail set is really cheap ??

 

[Gordy]

thats good to hear.

 

[SkinsFanLarry]

Sounds pretty damn cheap to me!

 

[kaelaria]

Yeah that doesn't sound right at all...way too low for those charges.

 

[SkinsFanLarry]

unless that's the 10% figure?

 

[SkinsFanLarry]

Both of the men whom Tampa police believe broke into the Gaspar Cigar Shoppe in Tampa by breaking through the common wall of an office that adjoined the store’s smoking lounge.

Eighteen-year-old Everaldo Alvarez-Burqueno was arrested last Wednesday evening by Tampa police and has been charged with two counts of burglary and two counts of grand theft. He has been freed on $8,000 bail from the Orient Road Jail. According to a report in the Tampa Tribune, the first suspect to be arrested, Jeremia Martinez-Cotto, remains in jail on $27,750 bail.

After cutting the wires to the store’s front security pad, both of the suspects were taped on the store’s surveillance system breaking into the lounge between 1:30 and 3:00 a.m. on July 3, where they proceeded to pry open 18 of the 88 private lockers inside and store approximately 50 boxes of cigars and a plasma television worth a total of about $15,000. They tried to enter the store’s walk-in humidor, but the humidor’s alarm sounded and they ran out.