A 26-year-old man was arrested overnight after allegedly trying to pry open the front door of one Wimauma home before breaking in through the back door of a second — one where the residents were still inside. Deputies later found him asleep on the couch, wearing the homeowner's shoes.
According to a statement from the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office
, deputies responded to a reported burglary in progress in Wimauma just before 11 p.m. on September 15. Investigators say Erick Moreno first attempted to pry open the front door of one residence before moving to a second home nearby, where he forced entry through a rear sliding door that deputies later found standing open. That second home had residents inside at the time of the break-in, per the same account.
When deputies entered the residence, they say they found Moreno asleep on the couch — wearing shoes that belonged to the homeowner. Deputies also located a bicycle at the scene believed to belong to Moreno, though the sheriff's office has not detailed how he arrived or whether he knew either household beforehand.
Charges Include Two Counts of Armed Burglary
Moreno was arrested and charged with two counts of burglary of an occupied dwelling with a weapon, along with possession of burglary tools, resisting an officer without violence, and providing a false identification card, the sheriff's office reports.
The armed burglary charges carry significant weight under Florida law. Under Florida Statute 810.02, burglary of an occupied dwelling becomes a first-degree felony punishable by up to 30 years or life in prison when the offender is armed or becomes armed with a dangerous weapon during the offense, according to the Law Offices of Roger P. Foley. The sheriff's office statement does not identify the specific weapon involved in Moreno's case.
The burglary tools charge also carries serious exposure. Florida Statute 810.06 classifies possession of implements intended for unlawful entry — items like crowbars or prying tools — as a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, per Richard Hornsby. Prosecutors must show Moreno possessed such tools with the specific intent to facilitate unauthorized entry.
Additional Misdemeanor and Identification Charges
Moreno's booking also includes a charge of resisting an officer without violence, a first-degree misdemeanor under Florida Statute 843.02 that carries up to 12 months in jail and a $500 fine, the Sammis Law Firm explains in coverage of the statutory threshold for non-violent resistance. Such charges typically arise from non-compliant behavior, like ignoring verbal deputy commands, rather than physical confrontation.
He also faces a charge identified by the sheriff's office as False Identification Card. The separate Sammis Law Firm analysis discusses Florida Statute 322.212 and fake identification cards.
A Fast-Growing Corner of Southern Hillsborough County
Wimauma, an unincorporated community in southern Hillsborough County, has grown rapidly in recent years, with its population climbing past 15,200 residents by 2025, up from 9,467 recorded in the 2020 U.S. Census, per data compiled by Point2Homes on the community's Wikipedia entry. Originally established in 1902 as a railroad town, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is the agency identified in the burglary account.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is led by Sheriff Chad Chronister. The sheriff's office handled the investigation described above.
The Wimauma arrest follows a broader pattern of burglary and property-crime enforcement across southern Hillsborough County in recent months. In August, Hillsborough deputies and Tampa police ran a joint surveillance detail in nearby Gibsonton that ended in the arrest of three commercial burglary suspects along the US Highway 41 corridor, as Hoodline reported in Gunfire, Struggle at Taiwan Express. The article also references other recent enforcement activity in nearby communities.
Whether Moreno had any prior connection to either homeowner, and whether impairment played any role in the incident, remain open questions that the sheriff's office has not addressed publicly.
