They drove to Mosaic to commit theft, Manatee deputies say. Then a K9 got involved.

After being tracked by K9’s and the aviation unit, two men were arrested by Manatee County deputies after authorities say they stole items from a Mosaic property and a truck from a nearby farm.

According to the sheriff’s office, Jesse Baker, 26, and a 17-year-old teen drove onto the Mosaic property at 37381 State Road 62 E. in Duette around 9:15 a.m. Tuesday and began stealing a large amount of copper power wire.

At some point during the theft, their vehicle got stuck in the sand and they walked over to the nearby GnD Farms and stole a work truck, deputies said.

They then drove the stolen truck back to Mosaic and attempted to pull their vehicle from the sand.

Mosaic employees spotted the suspicious behavior and notified the sheriff’s office. When deputies arrived, they said they found the suspects’ disabled vehicle full of copper wire.

Soon after, K9 units tracked them along State Road 62 and started to issue verbal warnings.

After a short chase, the 17-year-old was bit by one of the K9’s and deputies made the arrest.

The aviation unit then located Baker hiding in the woods nearby. He was also taken into custody.

The teen has an outstanding warrant for narcotics, deputies said. Baker has two warrants — one out of Polk County for theft and another out of Pasco County for narcotics.

Deputies are still investigating the wire theft, vehicle theft and other potentially related crimes.