MIAMI – The Miami Police Department issued a warning for anyone thinking about looting in the wake of Hurricane Irma.
"Thinking about looting? Ask these guys how that tuned out," police said on Facebook, sharing an image of several people sitting in a jail cell.
Miami police shared this photo of alleged looters accused of breaking into shops that had been closed in anticipation of Hurricane Irma's arrival in Florida. (Miami Police Dept.)
In Fort Lauderdale, nine people were arrested after a WPLG news crew recorded a group ransacking a sportswear shop.
Police said at least 28 people have been arrested for burglary and looting.
For days, forecasters warned that the hurricane was taking dead aim at the Miami area and the rest of the Florida Atlantic coast.
That prompted nearly 7 million people to seek shelter in one of the largest evacuations in U.S. history, including 6.4 million in Florida.
But the storm continued to shift west, losing some of its punch as it crossed Cuba's northern coast.
Irma then made the turn north and crashed across the Florida Keys on Sunday morning as a Category 4 storm, then hit the U.S. mainland on Sunday afternoon at Marco Island.
The storm went up the middle of the state, ripping off roofs, downing trees and knocking out power to more than 5 million customers before losing its punch and being downgraded to a tropical storm.
