HVAC Equipment Theft Leads to Employee Arrest in Florida
Key Highlights
- Cristian Ramos, 23, was charged with grand theft, a third-degree felony, in connection with HVAC equipment theft.
- Surveillance footage played a key role in identifying Ramos as the suspect, showing him unloading stolen items from a work van.
- Police executed a search warrant and recovered all stolen materials, confirming their ownership belonged to the employer.
CAPE CORAL, Florida — A Florida HVAC company employee was arrested on allegations of stealing equipment from his employer.
According to the Cape Coral Police Department, Cristian Kevin Felipe Ramos, 23, was charged with grand theft, a third-degree felony, after officers responded to a reported theft at a storage facility located at 2555 NE Pine Island Road. Investigators determined that HVAC equipment valued at nearly $2,000 had been removed earlier that morning, on March 11, from a company vehicle and stored at the site.
Surveillance footage showed Ramos, an employee of a Fort Myers-based HVAC service company, driving a marked work van into the facility around 6:30 a.m. Video captured Ramos exiting the vehicle, meeting with individuals on site, and unloading materials into nearby storage units, police stated.
Recovered items included flex ducting, mastic buckets, straps, and insulated boards, with a total estimated value of $1,985. Detectives executed a search warrant later that evening and confirmed the materials belonged to the employer.
During questioning, Ramos acknowledged being at the storage facility but denied removing equipment, contradicting video evidence. He was taken into custody later that evening at a business on Del Prado Boulevard North, police said.