Five men were arrested on Thursday morning after they were caught looting a home in Lee County that was devastated by Hurricane Ian.
On October 13, Orange County Sheriff’s Office deputies who were offering assistance in the county were flagged down by a resident of Fort Myers Beach. The individual told police that there was something suspicious about a group of men going through a nearby house.
Deputies made contact with the five men at the home in question and found them in the process of looting. One of the men was acting as a lookout, and the men had a work van with a magnetic sign for a fake company.
The five men arrested were 18-year-old Axel Martinez Quiles, 40-year-old Benigno Ortiz Diaz, 48-year-old Eli Francisco Acevedo Marin, 19-year-old Eli Yadiel Acevedo Ayala, and 57-year-old Luis Enrique Ceden Morales. The men all have addresses listed in Orange or Osceola County, according to court records.
All five men are facing multiple charges, including grand theft and burglary of an unoccupied structure during a state of emergency.
The men are currently in custody at the Lee County Jail.