2 Miami-Dade men arrested in major cigarette robbery in Virginia – NBC 6 South Florida

Two Miami-Dade men were arrested last month in connection with the robbery of a large cigarette shipment in Virginia.

Ramon Izquierdo, 57, of Hialeah, and Alberto Rico Perez, 31, of Miami Gardens, were arrested in the March 24 crime at a business in Culpeper, Virginia, police said Monday.

Both men were taken into custody in Miami-Dade and will be extradited to Virginia to face charges of burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary and two counts of grand larceny.

Miami-Dade Corrections

Culpeper police said at least five suspects were behind the Merchants Grocery Company robbery.

The suspects forced their way in, stole a large amount of tobacco products, loaded them into a box truck rented by the company and fled the scene.

Police said they worked with the ATF and numerous law enforcement agencies in New Jersey, New York, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida in the investigation, which led them to the stolen box truck and the arrests of Izquierdo and Perez.

Doral police and the Miami-Dade Fugitive Task Force took both men into custody last week.

“The actions of these criminals in our city have had a significant impact on the local business community,” Culpeper Police Chief Chris Settle said in a statement. “Our detectives and analysts worked tirelessly with law enforcement, leveraging new technologies and persistent investigative determination from federal partners along the entire East Coast. Technology has become an integral part of modern policing, but it is the men and women behind the technology that make it truly effective. Thank you to our partner agencies for their continued support and collaboration.”

Police said they were still investigating the individuals involved and said further charges could be filed.