FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A Fort Lauderdale man is accused of orchestrating "top-shelf" liquor thefts throughout Broward and Palm Beach counties.
Curtis Plummer Jr., 39, was arrested Thursday on charges of organized fraud and aggravated grand retail theft.
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According to a Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office probable cause affidavit, Plummer stole more than $1,000 worth of liquor from various stores since January, including two thefts from the Total Wine in Wellington.
In each of the thefts, the same man entered the store and walked out without paying for the booze. The man was accompanied by a different accomplice each time.
According to the report, the thieves got away in a silver 2009 Chevrolet Malibu registered to Plummer's wife.
A detective assigned to the investigation discovered that Plummer had been identified in similar thefts.
"During the above investigation(s) it became apparent other law enforcement agencies in Palm Beach County and Broward County have had recent cases involving the same suspects," the affidavit said.
Plummer was taken into custody by the Broward Sheriff's Office last week in connection with a separate theft. During questioning, "Plummer confessed to committing this theft, as well as the two other thefts of liquor from the Wellington Total Wine."
According to the affidavit, Plummer said he and his accomplices always stole "top-shelf" liquor that they would then sell to a bar owner in Fort Lauderdale for cash and split the profits.
"Plummer stated he had a drug problem as the reason he committed the thefts," the affidavit said.
He was being held in the main Palm Beach County jail on a cumulative bond of $40,500.