On December 2, 2006, a park visitor standing on the viewing platform at the Oasis Visitor Center noticed the trunk of his rental car up and two unknown men standing nearby. As he approached, he saw the two men get into a red van and drive away. The visitor discovered that a purse and fanny pack had been taken out of the trunk. Rangers were called to the scene to investigate. The victim described the two men, their vehicle and its license plate. The description of the van was relayed to rangers and to local agencies. A Collier County deputy found the van 20 miles away at a gas station right after hearing its description on the radio. Rangers then brought the victim/witness to the gas station, where he was able to identify one of the men, Luis Ramirez. A search of the vehicle was made and the items that had been stolen were found in a storage compartment. Rangers obtained a surveillance video tape from the gas station which showed Ramirez disposing of burglary tools before being contacted by the deputy. The identification and credit cards of the victims were never located. Both men were arrested and charged with several violations. Ramirez pled guilty to felony larceny of the personal property of another exceeding $1,000 (18 USC 661). He was sentenced to five years in jail and three years of supervised probation and ordered to pay restitution to his victims. Unfortunately, the other man was found not guilty at a jury trial due to insufficient evidence (inability of victim/witness to positively identify him and lack of forensic evidence tying him to the crime). Both men have extensive histories of this type of offense. Rangers Mary Jo Shreffler and Ryan Levins were the case agents.
