Key West The Newspaper

Miami man charged with stolen truck, boat and trailer

A Miami man was arrested Thursday charged with stealing a truck then using the truck to steal a boat and trailer.

The truck, a gold colored Ford F250, was stolen from Sands of the Keys, a business in Islamorada. The boat, a 2014 Sportsman with a Yamaha 150 horsepower engine on it, and the and trailer, a 2014 Venture, were stolen from a residence in the San Pedro Trailer Park in Islamorada.

At 1:20 a.m., Deputy Gil Gonzalez attempted to stop the truck towing the vessel at the 110 mile marker northbound because the tag on the trailer was expired. Instead of stopping, the truck sped up. Sheriff’s dispatchers notified Florida City police about the fleeing truck and Deputy Gonzalez continued to follow it. Lt. Al Ramirez was in Florida City at the time of the incident. He responded to the north end of the 18 mile stretch in Florida City with a set of Stinger Spikes. Stinger Spikes are used to puncture the tires of fleeing vehicles, bringing them to a slow, safe stop.

Lt. Ramirez deployed the spikes in front of the fleeing truck, puncturing one of its front tires. The truck turned left onto Krome Avenue, then left onto 352nd Street. As it came to a stop, two men fled from the truck.

A search of the area was conducted with the help of Florida City police, Homestead police and Miami Dade police. The truck’s passenger was located. 25 year old Derman Rodriguez initially complained he was having trouble breathing because he had ingested multiple types of drugs. He was transported to the hospital so he could be checked out. He was subsequently charged with grand theft of a vehicle and grand theft of a vessel. He was booked into the Miami-Dade County Correctional facility on those charges.

Sheriff’s detectives are continuing to investigate in an effort to identify and locate the driver of the stolen truck.