Grady Judd: Polk County men accused of stealing new air conditioning units from homes under construction

HAINES CITY, Fla. - Two Polk County men are in jail, accused of stealing several new air conditioning units from homes that were under construction, Sheriff Grady Judd said Thursday.

Video released by the sheriff's office shows a pickup truck leaving a community in the Haines City area loaded up with stolen AC units.

"When you have more new home construction, you have more burglaries and more thefts, because when they're building these houses, at some point in time in the construction, they have to leave construction materials out unwatched at night," said Judd.

VIDEO: Florida woman scales apartment complex while trying to escape from deputies

Deputies arrested Jose Gonzalez-Mariani and Marquise Bowland, accusing them of stealing 10 units. The majority of the thefts occurred in the Scene Terrace subdivision in the Haines City area. Judd said other crimes happened in Dundee and Lake Hamilton.

According to detectives, the suspects, who both made their first court appearances this week, tried to make a profit by selling AC compressors, brass and copper to secondary metal dealers.

The sheriff said these arrests should send a message to other criminals.

"We, along with the home builders, put surreptitious cameras in those neighborhoods to look for burglars such as this, because we all have to work together," Judd said.

Investigators said Gonzalez-Mariani admitted he and Bowland would cut the fuse boxes to remove the AC units. Both men are facing a series of charges, including grand theft, burglary and defrauding a secondary metals dealer.

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