Cops: Men Stole Coconuts From Palm Tree in Boca Raton, Arrested After Truck Gets Stuck

Coconuts in a palm tree. (Photo: Boca Daily News)

A pair of Broward County men were arrested after their utility truck got stuck in the grass after they tried to steal coconuts from a palm tree in a Boca Raton subdivision.

According to a police report, Boca Raton police were called to the Boca Verde East development at 11:40 a.m. Tuesday to find two men, later identified as Isaac Destin and Jean Charles, of Miramar, in a “cherry picker” style utility truck. A property manager for the community told officers he saw the men pull up in their truck and enter the property without permission to pick coconuts from the palm trees there.

After loading the coconuts into the truck, however, the vehicle became stuck. The property manager told police that as the men tried to free the vehicle, it caused several thousand dollars in damage to the grass, concrete pavers, sidewalk, and an AT&T fiber optic line. The sidewalk alone was estimated to cost as much as $2,000 to repair, the police report stated.

In a court filing, the arresting officer stated Destin told him that he is contracted by the Tase Coconut and Juice Bar, of Margate, to collect coconuts from palm trees so they can be used as ingredients. He said he had been collecting coconuts across the street, and entered Boca Verde despite pleas from his partner not to do so.

“I was an imbecile,” he reportedly told the officer, admitting he should have asked permission to go on private property.

Destin, 25, was charged with criminal mischief and transported to the Palm Beach County Jail, where records showed he was no longer present by Thursday.