Three visits to the same store, each time with merchandise they didn't pay for.
En el municipio de Humacao, una pareja de adultos mayores de Las Piedras fue arrestada tras visitar tres veces en un mes la misma tienda Home Depot, llevándose herramientas y equipos sin pagar. Lo que comenzó como un hurto solitario en mayo se convirtió en un patrón que la seguridad de la tienda terminó por identificar. El caso nos recuerda que la repetición, incluso en el error, deja huellas que el tiempo y la vigilancia inevitablemente descubren.
- Un hombre de 62 años visitó la misma tienda tres veces en menos de un mes, llevándose cortadoras de césped, gatos hidráulicos y compresores sin pagar.
- En la tercera visita, el 1 de junio, llegó acompañado de su pareja de 67 años, y juntos se llevaron una lavadora a presión, una parrilla de gas y dos toldos valorados en casi $682.
- El personal de seguridad los identificó durante ese tercer robo, lo que desencadenó los arrestos y puso en marcha el proceso judicial con rapidez.
- El total robado en los tres incidentes asciende a aproximadamente $2,568, y ambos enfrentan cargos ante el Tribunal de Distrito de Humacao.
- Él permanece detenido en el Complejo Correccional de Bayamón tras no poder pagar una fianza de $12,000, mientras ella quedó en libertad provisional tras pagar $700 a través de un fiador privado.
Durante poco más de un mes, Rafael Pedraza Rodríguez, de 62 años, convirtió el Home Depot de Humacao en destino recurrente. El 5 de mayo salió con una cortadora de césped, un gato hidráulico de tres toneladas y un carrete de manguera —más de mil dólares en mercancía—. Nueve días después regresó y se llevó un compresor eléctrico y un kit de compresor valorados en $868. El 1 de junio volvió una vez más, esta vez junto a su pareja Neyda L. López Mestre, de 67 años, y entre los dos tomaron una lavadora a presión, una parrilla de gas y dos toldos.
Fue en esa tercera visita cuando el personal de seguridad de la tienda los identificó. La policía llegó, realizó los arrestos y el caso avanzó con celeridad: los agentes Katherine Delgado Carrasquillo y Luis Morales García presentaron la evidencia ante el fiscal Israel Umpierre, quien autorizó los cargos.
Ante la jueza Lorraine Acevedo en el Tribunal de Distrito de Humacao, se determinó causa probable para arresto. El valor total de lo robado en los tres incidentes rondó los $2,568. Pedraza Rodríguez enfrentó tres cargos de apropiación ilegal agravada bajo el Artículo 182 del Código Penal de Puerto Rico; López Mestre, un cargo. La fianza de él se fijó en $12,000 —que no pudo pagar, por lo que fue recluido en el Complejo Correccional de Bayamón—, mientras que la de ella se estableció en $700, monto que cubrió mediante un fiador privado. Una vista preliminar quedó pautada para el 9 de junio de 2026.
A 62-year-old man and his 67-year-old partner made three separate trips to the same Home Depot in Humacao over the course of a month, each time leaving with merchandise they had not paid for. On May 5th, Rafael Pedraza Rodríguez walked out with a lawn mower, a three-ton hydraulic jack, and a hose reel—items worth just over a thousand dollars. Nine days later, he returned and took an electric air compressor and a compressor kit, valued at $868. Then, on the morning of June 1st, he came back a third time, this time with his partner Neyda L. López Mestre, 67, and together they took a pressure washer, a gas grill, and two awnings worth nearly $682.
Both residents of Las Piedras, the couple's pattern of theft might have continued undetected had security personnel at the store not been watching. On that third visit, internal security identified them. Police arrived, made the arrests, and the case moved quickly through the system. Officers Katherine Delgado Carrasquillo and Luis Morales García brought the evidence to prosecutor Israel Umpierre at the Humacao District Attorney's office, who authorized charges.
In Humacao District Court, Judge Lorraine Acevedo reviewed the evidence and found sufficient cause to arrest both suspects. The total value of stolen goods across all three incidents came to approximately $2,568. Pedraza Rodríguez faced three separate counts of aggravated unlawful appropriation under Article 182 of Puerto Rico law. López Mestre was charged with one count.
The judge set bail at $12,000 for Pedraza Rodríguez. He could not post it, so he was remanded to the Bayamón Correctional Complex to await trial. López Mestre's bail was set at $700, which she paid through a private bail bondsman, allowing her to be released on provisional liberty pending further proceedings.
A preliminary hearing was scheduled for June 9th, 2026. The case now moves into the next phase of the criminal justice system, with both defendants facing the consequences of their repeated visits to the same store.
Notable Quotes
Security personnel identified both suspects during the third theft on June 1st, leading to their arrest— Court records, Humacao District Court
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why would someone return to the same store twice after stealing once? Doesn't that seem like asking to get caught?
You'd think so. But sometimes people get comfortable, or they think they've found a pattern that works. The first theft went unnoticed. The second one too. By the third time, maybe they felt invisible.
The woman was charged with only one count, while the man faced three. Does that suggest she was less involved?
The charges reflect what they could prove about each person's participation. She was identified during the final theft, when both were present. He was the one who went back twice alone. The evidence shaped the charges.
They were both in their sixties. Does age factor into how these cases are typically handled?
Not in the charges themselves, but it might matter later—at sentencing, in bail decisions, in how a judge views the case. The woman's bail was significantly lower, which could reflect various factors, including her age and the single charge.
What happens now? Do they go to trial?
There's a preliminary hearing first, in a few days. That's where the prosecution presents enough evidence to justify moving forward. After that, if the case proceeds, they could negotiate a plea or go to trial. But the evidence here seems straightforward—security identified them, the thefts are documented.
Is this unusual for that store, or for Humacao?
The source doesn't say. But targeting the same location repeatedly suggests either desperation or a belief that security wasn't paying close attention. Until it was.