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Alleged tire thief arrested near Sunshine Skyway

 
Published Feb. 11, 2015

ST. PETERSBURG — A Tampa man faking roadside distress was arrested Tuesday for stealing tires from vehicles in a toll booth parking lot, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

Carlos Alberto Rivera-Pabon, 23, was sitting inside his 2008 Acura Sedan in the Sunshine Skyway bridge's north toll plaza parking lot when observers nearby reported to authorities he was behaving suspiciously. His sedan was missing a tire.

Rivera-Pabon initially told troopers when they arrived that he had a flat tire, but they noticed that two other vehicles in the lot were missing tires. In the man's possession, they found three extra tires that matched the missing ones.

Rivera-Pabon was arrested for theft and felony violation of probation, troopers said.