Construction burglaries are up, Manatee sheriff says after 2 caught on helicopter video

Robyn Murrell
·2 min read
5

Construction site burglaries have been increasing in Manatee County over the past year, the sheriff’s office told the Bradenton Herald, and last week two men were arrested with the help of the K-9 and aviation units.

Deputies were called to 89th Street Circle East in the Heron Bay development in Palmetto on March 8, the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office said.

Someone had reported seeing two men packing boxes into a U-Haul truck at one of the homes, which was still under construction.

Deputies attempted to pull over the U-Haul for a traffic stop, but the men fled into Hillsborough County.

While the men thought they had evaded deputies on the ground, the Manatee sheriff’s office Aviation Unit helicopter kept a close eye on them from the sky.

Hillsborough County deputies apprehended them with the help of Manatee County’s K-9 unit.

The two men, Alexi Milian-Hernandez and Asiel Mesa Labrador, were charged with burglary of an unoccupied structure and fleeing to elude law enforcement.

Both men also had several outstanding felony warrants out of Hillsborough and were taken to the Hillsborough County jail.

Increasing burglaries

Melissa Conway, public information officer for the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, told the Bradenton Herald that from 2021 to 2022, burglaries at construction sites have doubled.

The sheriff’s office started informally tracking the number of construction burglaries in 2021, she said.

There were 50 cases in 2021 and 134 cases in 2022.

All of the burglary cases were reported in District 3, “which is the area north of the Manatee River and east of Interstate 75 where the majority of new development is taking place,” Conway said.

To reduce the number of cases, the sheriff’s office has established a construction site burglary program where contractors and developers can notify them of the location of projects and delivery dates.

Conway said that as staffing allows, the sheriff’s office can send patrols out to the site periodically around the time that “valuable” materials are going to be delivered on-site.

“If you ever see anything suspicious, don’t hesitate to reach out,” the sheriff’s office said.

To learn more about the construction site burglary watch program, visit https://bit.ly/3FBqmTR.