EL PORTAL, Fla. – A former employee accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars worth of liquor from the only major chain in the village of El Portal was arrested Thursday after evading authorities for months, according to police.
Richard Love, 33, who police say stole between $45,000 and $60,000 worth of liquor from Big Daddy’s Wine and Liquors, located at 8600 Biscayne Blvd., was silent when Local 10 News arrived at the scene as detectives escorted him out in handcuffs on Friday.
Love, dubbed the “Big Daddy’s booze bandit” by police, was taken into custody Thursday.
For months, Love allegedly rang up small purchases before taking off with expensive bottles of liquor. After being fired, he managed to avoid arrest until detectives from the Miami Police Department’s Felon Apprehension Unit helped locate him.
“He was in control of the night shift and facilitated the theft of much of the liquor stock,” said Rene Gutierrez, a detective with the El Portal Police Department. “He was the only employee at the store, but management caught on to the losses and caught him on camera.”
“We were looking for him... he was quite elusive,” added Gutierrez. “It’s a big deal. You can never get away with money, you always leave a trail.”
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Authorities said that trail ultimately led to Love’s arrest.
Jail records show he is facing a charge of second-degree grand theft and was processed at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. His bond information wasn’t immediately available.