CAPE CORAL, Fla. — More than 150 gallons of diesel fuel for only $13? That’s too good to be true.
But police in Cape Coral said an accused thief tried — and failed — to make off with that steal of a deal.
It all played out yesterday at the RaceTrac off Del Prado Boulevard near Veterans Memorial Parkway.
Officers were en route after RaceTrac reported that gas had been stolen the day before. While en route, RaceTrac contacted police again and said the potential suspect was back at the station.
When officers got there, they discovered 45-year-old Yudsandry Vazquez in a white van at pump #3.
Officers reported that the pump showed 3 and a half gallons worth of gas had been fueled out.
But officers then noticed a bladder-like item — a container of sorts — in Vazquez’s van where the fuel was being pumped into. Inside that — they found more than 150 gallons worth of diesel.
Inside the gas pump itself, a ‘pulsar dispenser tampering device’ was found, according to the police report.
Jason LaBonte, an auto tech with Legendary Automotive & Truck Service in Fort Myers, explained to NBC2 that the device essentially fools the gas pump.
“They’re calling it a manipulator. And it’s a device that they have to — they have to get inside the gas pump, basically, and they install this manipulator,” LaBonte explained. “And it slows the pulsar down. The slower it spins, the less money it charges you for fuel.”
In this case, Vazquez didn’t drive off with the cheap gas. He was hauled off to jail instead and is now facing several criminal charges.
The post How an accused thief tried — and failed — to make out with a steal of a deal on diesel fuel appeared first on NBC2 News.
