A tracking device helped police nab Romanians suspected of taking more than $10,000 in electronics from a Verizon store on County Road 466.
A security company contacted the Wildwood Police Department at 1:36 p.m. Thursday about a vehicle traveling on U.S. 301. The occupants of the vehicle were believed to have been involved in a distraction theft at the Verizon store.
A woman in the group stuffed 14 cell phones, 10 4g Nano SIM cards and other items in a pocket of her skirt, according to an arrest report from the Wildwood Police Department. The incident was captured on video surveillance. The items taken had a total value of $10,358.
An officer stopped an older model van in which the group was traveling. The group included two men, two women a 17-year-old male and an infant.
Store personnel arrived on the scene of the traffic stop and identified members of the group as having been in the store.
Arrested were:
• Ionut Aduva, 28, on charges of grand theft, coordinating with others in a theft of $3,000 and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
• Maria Aduva, 22, on charges of grand theft, coordinating with others in a theft of $3,000 and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. A hold was also put on her by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
• Codreanu Florentina, 32, on charges of grand theft, coordinating with others in a theft of $3,000 and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
• John Lazar, 18, on charges of grand theft, coordinating with others in a theft of $3,000 and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Earlier this month, a group of Romanians was arrested after a foiled distraction theft at Sam’s Club in Lady Lake.
