Police: Opportunistic thief faces accusations in Miami-Dade, Broward

HIALEAH, Fla. – A thief saw an opportunity when a woman left her purse in her open car in front of a daycare, and he swiftly got away with her credit cards.

Surveillance videos show him stealing them and later using one at a Publix Supermarket on July 21, in Hialeah.

“He’s going to daycares and seeing moms and dads are carrying their kids’ belongings and they are leaving their valuables in a vehicle thinking it will be 30 seconds to a minute,” Detective Scarlett Hernandez said later adding, “You can have anything in the vehicle.”

Detectives identified Michael Celestin as a suspect and learned it wasn’t the first time he had been accused of doing that. The thief was also a suspect in a similar crime on July 20, in Pembroke Pines.

Detectives were asking anyone with information about the case to call Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477 or Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.

Watch the surveillance video (No audio)


About the Authors
Rosh Lowe headshot

Reporter Rosh Lowe has been covering news for nearly two decades in South Florida. He joined Local 10 in 2021.

Andrea Torres headshot

The Emmy Award-winning journalist joined the Local 10 News team in 2013. She wrote for the Miami Herald for more than 9 years and won a Green Eyeshade Award.

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