HAMILTON COUNTY, Florida — A routine stop at a Florida agricultural inspection station led to the discovery of a swapped trailer VIN and multiple alleged fraud-related items, resulting in felony charges against a Miami man.

On February 20, officers with the Florida Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement conducted an inspection involving a Volvo tractor pulling what appeared to be a 2009 utility refrigerated trailer. Upon closer examination, investigators determined the trailer was actually a 2022 model with a swapped Vehicle Identification Number.

Authorities said the trailer, valued at approximately $65,000, had been tampered with. Its true ownership remains under investigation.

Following the discovery of the altered VIN, officers conducted a vehicle inventory and uncovered several incriminating items, including a card reader and encoder, multiple suspected fraudulent credit cards, three iPhones, a laptop, and a tube of sealant believed to be used to alter credit cards.

Miguel Perez Bacallao, 41, of Miami, Florida, was arrested and booked into the Hamilton County Jail. He faces multiple felony charges, including possession of an altered credit card, possession of tools used to manufacture fraudulent credit cards, and an active felony larceny warrant out of Martin County, Florida.

The Florida Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement operates 23 agricultural inspection stations on 19 highways entering and exiting the state. The agency investigates crimes involving agriculture as well as offenses occurring on property owned or operated by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The investigation into the trailer’s ownership and related offenses remains ongoing.

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