Two men charged in theft of manhole covers in Hillsborough

VALRICO — Deputies say two men stole 15 manhole covers from a Valrico neighborhood Monday night.

One of the men, Michael David Rowe, 25, told deputies he planned to sell the covers as scrap metal to get money for a truck payment, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office reported.

At 11 p.m., deputies got a call about a suspicious vehicle. When they spotted the Chevrolet Avalanche in a Brandon neighborhood off Bell Shoals Road, they found 15 manhole covers in its bed.

Rowe was sitting beside them, along with a 24-inch pry bar, and he told deputies he had stolen them from the Bloomingdale West subdivision, the Sheriff's Office reported.

Deputies arrested Rowe, of 4753 Red Pine Way in Wesley Chapel, and the truck's driver, Kenneth Currey Pierce, 20, of 2126 S 86th St. in Palm River.

Each was charged with grand theft, and Rowe was also charged with dealing in stolen property.

Deputies put the manhole covers back.