Four Cuban nationals are facing serious prison time—up to a combined 832 years—after being charged in connection with a large-scale criminal theft ring operating across Florida and Texas. If convicted, they also face deportation.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier and Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister announced the arrests, calling the case an example of the consequences of lax border enforcement. Uthmeier stated that one of the suspects entered the U.S. legally during the Obama administration, while the other three entered illegally under the Biden administration. “They’ve all got criminal records and shouldn’t have been here,” he said.
The investigation began in May when detectives with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Organized Crime Task Force noticed a pattern of Electronic Control Module (ECM) thefts from freightliner semi-trucks. These ECMs—often called the “brains” of the truck—render the vehicle useless once removed…