Three men accused of running a monthslong string of commercial burglaries across Miami-Dade and Broward counties are now facing felony charges after detectives say one of them struck a sheriff's sergeant with a minivan and pinned his foot beneath its tire during a Doral takedown Monday. Investigators say the crew used cargo vans, recycling bins, a crowbar and even an electronic signal jammer to break into warehouses and haul off electronics, including roughly $200,000 worth of iPhones and Samsung phones from a single freight company.
The case centers on a burglary at Universal Freight Logistics at 1362 NW 78th Ave. on August 11, where surveillance video showed an older-model white Ford Econoline van pulling up around 8:32 p.m., according to WPLG Local 10. Three masked men were inside the business for roughly three minutes, removing three blue recycling bins later found to contain the stolen phones, and the break-in left more than $1,000 in damage to the building's front door.
Surveillance Leads to a Stolen Van and a Suspicious Caravan
The investigation, which spans burglaries reported since February across Miami-Dade and Broward counties, drew in the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office, Broward Sheriff's Office, and police departments in Doral, Medley and Sweetwater, per the station's report. On August 26, Doral detectives began surveilling a black Dodge Caravan that circled a warehouse district for roughly two and a half hours, repeatedly stopping near loading docks and the rear of shuttered warehouses.
The next day, a 2013 Ford E-250 van valued at about $58,000 was reported stolen from Global Turbine Services at 10814 NW 33rd St. That same stolen van later turned up near the 7400 block of Northwest 54th Street, and its license plate had allegedly been swapped for another plate reported stolen, the same account notes. Investigators say the van contained a crowbar and several garbage bins when it was located.
Casing a Warehouse District Before the Arrests
On August 31, detectives observed all three suspects — identified as Reinier Bustillo-Gomez, Yoandrys Cue and Jose Solano-Montelier — allegedly casing a warehouse district near Northwest 108th Avenue and Northwest 17th Street. When Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office Organized Crimes Bureau detectives and the Doral Police Department's crime suppression team moved in, the confrontation turned physical.
Bustillo-Gomez, who was driving the black Dodge Caravan, allegedly struck a Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office sergeant with the vehicle and pinned the sergeant's foot beneath the front driver's-side tire, according to the WPLG Local 10 report. Investigators say Bustillo-Gomez's build, height and gait were consistent with one of the masked burglary suspects seen in surveillance footage. Solano-Montelier, meanwhile, allegedly pushed a Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office sergeant during the encounter and was found with a black ski mask in his pocket at the time of his arrest.
Cue was taken into custody by a Doral police officer and allegedly discarded black and blue gloves along with a black ski mask before being detained. A black electronic device believed to be a signal jammer was visible inside the Dodge Caravan behind the driver's seat, and investigators say one suspect had appeared to carry the device, which can interfere with wireless alarm systems, cellular backup communications, GPS devices and police radio frequencies.
Felony Charges and a Prior Federal Case
Under Florida law, striking a law enforcement officer with a vehicle can elevate what might otherwise be a lesser charge into aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, a first-degree felony carrying a mandatory minimum of five years and up to 30 years in prison, according to Florida Statute § 784.07. Possessing burglary tools like crowbars, jammers or ski masks with intent to break in is separately classified as a third-degree felony under Florida Statute § 810.06, punishable by up to five years and a $5,000 fine.
All three men — 43-year-old Bustillo-Gomez, 41-year-old Cue and 37-year-old Solano-Montelier, all Cuban nationals living in Miami-Dade County — face charges including grand theft of a vehicle, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer with violence, possession of burglary tools, depriving an officer of means of protection, attempted tampering with physical evidence and loitering or prowling. All three were transported to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, the 1,300-bed county facility in Doral that serves as Miami-Dade's primary intake center for felony bookings, and all invoked their right not to speak with detectives.
Cue's record includes a 2016 federal case out of Connecticut, where he was sentenced to 57 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for his role in a multistate burglary ring that stole nearly $2 million in high-end retail merchandise across six states, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut. That earlier case involved disabling store alarm systems during overnight break-ins at outlet stores, a pattern investigators say bears similarities to the tactics used in the recent South Florida burglaries.
An Evolving Tactic and an Open Legal Question
The use of a signal jammer to potentially defeat wireless alarms points to a tactic that carries its own separate federal exposure. Operating or possessing a jamming device violates the Communications Act of 1934, which the Federal Communications Commission enforces with civil penalties of up to $112,500 per violation, daily fines starting at $16,000, and the potential for criminal imprisonment and equipment forfeiture, since jammers can also block 911 calls and public safety radio traffic. Whether federal prosecutors will pursue charges tied to the jammer or to the burglary ring's movement across county lines, or whether the case will stay entirely in Florida state court, remains an open question.
Doral's warehouse district, where much of the recent surveillance took place, has logged 6,490 property crimes between 2019 and 2024, though the city's overall crime rate dropped 12% in 2023 after police launched a targeted crime-reduction initiative, per Hoodline's prior local reporting. Industrial and freight zones in West Miami-Dade remain frequent targets because of the concentration of bulk commercial goods moving through them. South Florida counties account for more than 22% of Florida's roughly 13,600 annual burglary arrests, even as nonresidential commercial burglaries have declined 6% nationally from 2023 to 2024, according to a study by the Council on Criminal Justice.
