Three Florida men have been arrested after an off-duty detective caught the cutting down traffic lights.
According to deputies, on Sunday at 1 a.m., a Hernando County Sheriff’s detective was driving home from an off-duty detail when he saw a suspicious van in the area of Hexam Road and Commercial Way.
The driver of the van had stopped near the intersection and then turned off the vehicle’s headlights. The detective then observed sparks emanating from the area where traffic lights are in the process of being installed.
Additional deputies soon arrived on the scene where they saw three individuals using a saw to cut the traffic lights off the poles.
Three traffic lights had already been placed inside the van by the suspects.
All three men admitted to stealing the traffic lights. Each traffic light was valued at $5,000.
Aaron Ward, James Donnelly, and Oleksiy Naumenko, were each arrested on a charge of Grand Theft.
They were transported to the Hernando County Detention Center where they were each held in lieu of a $2,000 bond.