Ron DeSantis warns looters after Hurricane Ian’s devastation: Do not loot.

Ron DeSantis warns looters after Hurricane Ian’s devastation: Do not loot. Amid the turmoil left by Hurricane Ian, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis offered a harsh caution to would-be criminals: “Don’t even think about looting.”

This week, Hurricane Ian devastated parts of southwest Florida, leaving a wake of destruction and loss of life in its wake. The death toll is at least 45 at the moment, but it is anticipated to grow when rescue workers reach areas cut off by the Category 4 hurricane’s devastation.

Winds from Storm Ian, which made landfall near the island of Cayo Costa, measured at 155 mph, 2 mph short of the Saffir-Simpson scale’s threshold for a Category 5 hurricane. The Labor Day Hurricane (1935) had winds of 185 mph, Hurricane Andrew (1992) had winds of 165 mph, and Hurricane Michael (2018) had winds of 160 mph, making it one of only four hurricanes to impact Florida with those or higher wind speeds.

The coastal areas were wiped out and boats were flung around like toys as the massive storm raged.

Some Floridians, meanwhile, have taken advantage of the chaos to steal from local businesses.

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office shared images from Friday’s arrests of five alleged looters on their social media accounts.

“Taking a firm position against looting, Sheriff Carmine Marceno means business. If you engage in criminal activities, we will arrest you as we monitor the area “a Facebook post from the sheriff’s office announced.

To those who might consider looting in the wake of the catastrophic hurricane, DeSantis issued a stern warning.

During a news conference near Fort Myers in southwestern Florida, DeSantis claimed, “They boarded up all the businesses, and there are guys that scrawled on their plywood, ‘you loot, we shoot.'” “We will not stand by and watch lawlessness profit from this. Do not imagine that you can go about here and take advantage of individuals who have had bad luck because we are a law-and-order state and this is a law-and-order town.”

Later that day, during a press conference in St. Augustine, in the state’s northeastern corner, DeSantis reiterated his law-and-order stance.

“The other thing we’re concerned about is making sure we’re keeping peace and order,” DeSantis said of the hardest-hit communities. “Do not even consider stealing from the stores. Don’t even consider taking advantage of those who are desperate now.”

“DeSantis replied, “I can tell you, in the state of Florida, you never know what may be lying behind somebody’s home. Given that we live in a Second Amendment state, I for one would not take that risk.”

In Lee County, Christina Pushaw, the fast response director for the DeSantis campaign, posted photographs of placards that read “Try to loot, I will devour your face” and “Loot here, die here.”

Deputy Sheriff Carmine Marceno of Lee County issued a warning, “This county is off-limits. Make sure you don’t mess up like that. Given that we actually have available beds in the prison, that is. In addition, I promise you that you will end up in that jail if you ever try to victimize one of our wonderful locals.”

For sure, and I feel secure sending this in on behalf of law enforcement, there will be a zero-tolerance policy for looting and violence in this community,” Lee County Manager Roger Desjarlais declared.

Lee County, which has been severely hit by the storm, has imposed a curfew from 6 p.m. until further notice.