Deputies say a recently fired delivery driver turned a Fort Myers logistics yard into his own personal demolition zone, slicing up the tires of 29 Amazon vans and tossing key fobs into the Caloosahatchee River before getting hauled in on felony charges.
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office says a 22-year-old Cape Coral man was arrested after investigators linked him to vandalism at an Amazon facility on Logistics Drive. Detectives report that multiple key fobs and other items were later pulled from the riverbed and seized as evidence in the case.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies were called out on May 1 for reports of extensive damage at the logistics site. They say they arrived to find 29 delivery vehicles with punctured bodies and slashed tires. Using license plate reader footage, investigators say they tracked down a recently terminated worker, identified as 22-year-old Anthony Gillio of Cape Coral, who was booked on charges of grand theft, two counts of criminal mischief and tampering with evidence, according to Gulf Coast News.
Detectives Fish Key Fobs Out Of The River
Investigators say that after the damage was discovered, staff reported 23 key fobs missing from the lot. Detectives later searched a section of the Caloosahatchee River where the suspect is accused of dumping evidence. Local coverage shows a detective wading in shallow water and pulling out several key fobs, a red knife and a pair of gloves. Those items were collected and logged as evidence in the investigation, per Shore News Network.
Amazon: Driver Worked For A Delivery Service Partner
Amazon told reporters the person arrested was not a direct Amazon employee but instead worked for an independent Delivery Service Partner that handles local last-mile routes. The company said its operations in the area kept running and were not disrupted by the vandalism.
The story, along with video of the damaged vans and the river search, has circulated on both local and national outlets. Reporting that cites the sheriff’s department account is available from AOL/USA TODAY, and CBS Chicago posted a clip showing the recovery effort. As those outlets note, Amazon says it is cooperating with law enforcement and with the affected Delivery Service Partners.
Key Fobs, Fleet Security And A Growing Headache
Security specialists say the episode is a textbook reminder of how valuable and vulnerable key fobs have become. Fobs and other programmable devices are increasingly used in vehicle thefts and can create serious risks for commercial fleets if they are left sitting in open areas or poorly secured rooms.
Police and safety experts recommend keeping fobs locked in controlled-access rooms, using sign-in and sign-out logs at fleet hubs, and storing active fobs in signal-blocking pouches to cut down on the risk of cloning or theft. For more detail on how key fob cloning works and what owners can do to protect themselves, see reporting from FOX 32 Chicago.
Legal Status
Authorities say the suspect was arrested on May 1. Jail records and subsequent reporting indicate he was released the following day and entered a not guilty plea in court on May 5. The case remains under investigation, and prosecutors are expected to review the evidence file before formal charges are finalized and a trial schedule is set, according to AOL/USA TODAY.
Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno publicly praised deputies and detectives for combining technology with old-fashioned investigative work to track down evidence and build the case. Local officials say the incident should serve as a nudge to tighten key-control procedures at busy logistics hubs. Amazon, for its part, says it is working with the impacted Delivery Service Partners to assess the damage to the vans and to keep customer disruption to a minimum, per Gulf Coast News.
