Truck driver and owner arrested for ‘organized fuel theft’ in Florida

Florida authorities stopped a semi truck and arrested the two men inside in connection with an organized fuel theft operation.

Officers with the Florida Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement (OALE) responded to an alert about a white and blue 2002 Freightliner semi truck tied to “organized fuel theft,” according to an April 15 statement from Florida Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson.

Officials located the truck on I-10 in Walton County, and a traffic stop was conducted.

During the traffic stop, officers learned that truck driver Leonexi Rodriguez had active warrants out of Sarasota County.

As investigators performed a safety sweep of the semi truck, they found the registered owner of the truck, Alain De Jesus Aguila Martinez, hiding in the sleeper berth area. He was also wanted on multiple warrants in Walton County.

Both men were booked into the Walton County Jail for the warrants and on felony charges of organized fraud, retail fuel theft, and grand theft.