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Men Arrested Trying To Remove Palmetto Berries, Deputies Say

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TBO.com

Published: September 25, 2008

Updated: 09/25/2008 04:32 pm

Four men tried removing palmetto berries from a state park in Wimauma on Wednesday morning, Hillsborough County deputies say.

Deputies arrested Guadalupe Antonio of Immokalee, Guillermo Juarez of Immokalee, Neptaly Vasquez of Fort Myers and Luis Sanchez of Fort Myers. Each was charged with unlawful plant removal, and Juarez and Vasquez also were charged with armed trespassing.

A Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office report doesn't say why the men were removing the berries.

But several people also were arrested last year for trying to steal palmetto berries. The reason: The hidden fruit of the common palmetto is as good as gold in the view of some prostate cancer patients. The berries, according to medical folklore and some herbalists, are a natural healer.

Antonio and Juarez have bailed out from jail. Vasquez remains in Orient Road Jail, with bail set at $1,000. Sanchez remains in Orient Road Jail, with bail set at $100.

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