Oakland Park, Fla. – March 7, 2025 – Four men were arrested this week in connection to a large-scale gasoline theft operation across Broward County, the Broward Sheriff’s Office (BSO) announced Friday.
The suspects were arrested Tuesday after being caught in the act at a Wawa gas station in Oakland Park. The individuals involved were identified as Noel Gonzalez Gonzalez, 34, and Eusebio Noel Gonzalez Claro, 63, both from Miami; Orlando Diaz Cordero, 42, from Tampa; and Blas Junior Duran, 36, from Homestead.
Detectives from BSO’s Burglary Apprehension Team (B.A.T.) and the Pembroke Pines Police Department responded to a tip-off that led them to the suspects. According to BSO spokeswoman Miranda Grossman, the group had been siphoning large quantities of diesel gasoline from multiple gas stations across Broward County.
On the day of the arrests, detectives observed a Honda Odyssey parked above an underground fuel cap at the Wawa gas station, actively siphoning fuel into the vehicle. Two other vehicles, a Ford Expedition and a Ford Transit van, were used as feeder vehicles, transporting the stolen fuel. After observing the theft, detectives followed the vehicles to a nearby Chevron gas station on West Oakland Park Blvd, where they conducted a felony stop and apprehended Duran, Claro, and Gonzalez. Diaz was arrested in the Ford Transit near the Wawa location.
The vehicles used in the operation had been retrofitted with large tanks designed to store the stolen fuel. The suspects had extracted fuel from the underground tank at the Wawa and transferred it into the Odyssey, then offloaded it into 1,000-gallon fuel tanks in the Ford Transit van. One suspect acted as a lookout while the others siphoned the fuel.
The suspects are facing several charges, including retail fuel theft, unlawful conveyance of fuel, and grand theft. As of Friday, Gonzalez Gonzalez remained in custody at the Broward Main Jail, also held on an immigration hold.
This arrest brings a significant disruption to an illegal fuel siphoning operation, and further investigation is ongoing.
