Odd ‘organized crime ring’ was devoted to stealing berries, Florida sheriff says

As “organized crime” rings go, deputies just took down a strange one in Florida devoted entirely to stealing berries.

The 11 men were skilled at it, too, having amassed 6,000 pounds of saw palmetto berries before deputies closed in, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office said in an Aug. 13 news release.

The roundup happened around 10 p.m. Aug. 11 in a rural area east of Stuart, and the suspects did not go down easily, the sheriff’s office says.

“For some time, this organized crime ring — believed to have been targeting counties across Florida — had been surveilling private property, ranches and farmland in Martin County,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

“The crew traveled from outside the county and set their sights on property near SW Citrus Blvd. What they didn’t know was that our Agricultural Unit detectives were conducting counter-surveillance, tracking their movements into the county and waiting for what they suspected would be a berry-bountiful heist. As anticipated, they struck.”

The men scattered and ran when deputies tried to detain them, leading to “multiple taser deployments,” the sheriff’s office says.

Thirty bags of berries were found in their vehicles, each weighing 200 pounds, officials said.

“Detectives also seized valuable evidence during the bust, including journals listing potential other victims, further revealing the scope of their operations,” officials said.

Ten of the men gave addresses in Immokalee, a largely agricultural community in southwest Florida, and the eleventh said he lives in Memphis, Tennessee, the sheriff’s office said.

The 11 men are charged with harvesting saw palmetto berries without a permit, and two face an additional charges of resisting arrest, affidavits show.

Nine of the men were living in the country illegally, and they will be released into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the sheriff’s office said.

Saw palmetto berries are coveted for their medicinal purposes, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture. Harvesting season is typically August through September, experts say.

“The berries are used to treat problems associated with urinary health, hair loss, symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia inflammation and irregular testosterone levels. Large retailers sell shampoo, powders, capsules and more featuring [saw palmetto berries],” the department reports.

“The berries are low to the ground, deep in the middle of the palmetto. Before reaching the berries, rough saw-like edges of the palm fronds can scratch the hands and arms. The medicinal value and the vast effort required of harvesting are contributing factors to the price of the berry.”

Stuart is about a 105-mile drive north from Miami.

This story was originally published August 15, 2025 at 2:33 PM with the headline "Odd ‘organized crime ring’ was devoted to stealing berries, Florida sheriff says."