VARICO, Fla. (WFLA) – A months-long investigation has led to the arrest of a man who Hillsborough County deputies say regularly threw hundreds of roofing nails onto roadways in the Valrico community.
According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, deputies began investigating on Sept. 11 after someone called to report several nails scattered around Miller Road and Lithia Center Lane.
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Over the next five months, 27 more such cases occurred, including further down the street at the intersection of Miller Road and Bucknell Road, authorities said.
Some people also reported having their vehicles damaged by nails. Multiple NewsChannel 8 viewers sent in photos of the nails in the tires.
“The first day I hammered in three nails. A week later, one or two more — and at least one nail a week,” Lauren Cherup told 8 On Your Side.
Investigators eventually determined the suspect was driving a white pickup truck. Then, on Jan. 13, they spotted the vehicle, a 2022 Toyota Tundra, on Miller Road.
Detectives said they saw the driver, 51-year-old Felix Uresti, get out of the car and drive nails into the road.
Deputies searched Uresti’s truck and said they found a large bucket of nails in the back seat. According to detectives, the nails were the same type of roof nails found in previous incidents.
(Image credit: Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office)
Uresti was arrested and charged with six counts of criminal mischief ($1,000 or more) and one count of throwing a deadly missile at a vehicle. Uresti was also charged with violating Florida’s trash laws, officials said.
After his arrest, Uresti told officers he thought someone was following him and that he was frustrated with law enforcement.
“Throwing nails into the road is a malicious and deliberate act that puts innocent people at risk and has serious consequences,” Sheriff Chad Chronister said. “This is a senseless decision that endangers working families, children and first responders when seconds count.”
Anyone who sustained a nail injury in the Miller Road area is asked to call Hillsborough County detectives at 813-247-8200.
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