House cleaners accused of stealing $14,000 in goods, locking owner out of Florida home
By Isabella Benjumea
Click here for updates on this story
LEHIGH ACRES, Florida (WBBH) — Deputies say two people hired to clean a home on Manhattan Street in Lehigh Acres are accused of stealing more than $14,000 worth of electronics and other items, including two Xboxes, three PlayStation consoles, 10 pairs of Jordan sneakers, and a wedding ring, before neighbors noticed suspicious behavior and helped authorities catch them.
“It was rather disconcerting, considering this has been a quiet area since we moved in, five years ago, so this is the first time we’ve had any real crime on the street or in this immediate vicinity,” said neighbor Kyle Wicklund.
Authorities identified the suspects as Alexander Rubio and Crystal Valdez. Deputies say the pair even changed the doorknobs, locking the homeowner out of her own house.
“I was shocked, I was shocked that somebody got robbed here,” said neighbor Gilbert Acosta.
Neighbors reported that Rubio and Valdez repeatedly returned to the house, even mowing the lawn multiple times to avoid raising suspicion.
“They avoided suspicion by conducting activities at the house that seemed normal, the people were moving out, so we thought it was just routine,” Wicklund said.
Thanks to the vigilance of neighbors, the suspects were eventually caught.
“As soon as we figured out what was going on, I called the cops, and then they conducted their investigation, and luckily, oddly enough, the perpetrators came back yesterday, and we were able to call the cops and get them arrested,” Wicklund said.
Some residents say this type of crime is unusual for the neighborhood.
“I don’t think it’s going to happen like that again, this is a safe neighborhood, I mean, I raised my kids here, my grandkids,” Acosta said.
Rubio and Valdez are now facing charges of grand theft.
Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.