A man of Cuban origin was arrested by Florida authorities accused of stealing exotic birds from various businesses and homes in Miami-Dade County.
According to the medium Telemundo 51the Cuban was identified as Lázaro Ariel Mantillaur, 45 years old, who appeared before a Miami court on Monday, July 24.
This person is facing 10 counts of grand burglary, breaking and entering, and resisting arrest.
The police report indicates that the subject was arrested last Friday in the city of Doral, after an investigation that lasted several weeks and began due to multiple reports of similar robberies in the county in South Florida.
The police indicated that, after the arrest, they found 14 exotic birds that had been reported as stolen, which had a commercial value between 3,000 and 5,000 dollars. These animals were returned to their respective owners.
One of these grateful people, identified as Eduardo Muñoz, told the aforementioned local media that two birds had been stolen from his home. Similarly, he revealed that while 14 birds were returned, several others could not be recovered.
“It seems that they have already been sold or moved, I don’t have details of that,” he said.
The man also explained that the stolen animals were in plastic boxes from Publix, since it seems that they were going to be transported to another point, which could be out of the state, or even the country.
He also indicated that Mantillaur seems to be responsible for several robberies committed in the area where he lives, but that he was making mistakes over time, so the police managed to find him and arrest him.
The theft of two birds was reported at the Galloway Farm Nursery at the beginning of the month. The incident was recorded by the security cameras of the premises, located at 7790 87th Avenue in Kendall.
The stolen birds were named after Paco and Jaime, both of which were popular with customers. Pepe the umbrella cockatoo managed to be recovered, however, Ricki, a 22-year-old macaw, was not found by the police.
Mantillaur now remains in custody at the Metrowest Detention Center, where a judge set bond at $63,500.
