The Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office arrested three men for allegedly stealing hundreds of oranges from a Donna grove.

The sheriff's office said they found hundreds of stolen oranges inside an SUV in January.

"All that fruit was thrown on the ground and when the fruit hits the ground we can not pack it anymore," Edinburg Citrus Grow Care Manager Jose Silva said.

Silva maintains the grove in Donna where the oranges were stolen.

"We have been seeing some vehicles in the grove, but we have not been able to catch them," Silva said.

The three men allegedly responsible for the theft were identified Luis Sandoval, Edwin Hernandez and Delfino Sandoval, and they were each charged with felony theft of property for allegedly; a minor was also arrested.

"For them to just come in and take it, it is just not fair for the grower," Silva said.

Silva says that haul set them back by about $5,000, and it's not the first time the grove has been picked clean by thieves.

He says he's tried taking steps to stop the thefts from happening.

Silva says they had to create a barrier by digging ditches to make it harder for vehicles to get from the road into their groves, but the thefts don't stop.

Texas Citrus Mutual President Dale Murden says the organization also works to prevent thefts. The group offers a $1,000 reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of citrus thieves.

Murden says the majority of the stolen fruit will end up being sold on roadsides or at flea markets. It's why the organization also works with a compliance officer from the Texas Citrus Valley Committee.

"He goes around to flea markets and different things to try and prove ownership and what not, and he works with the Hidalgo County Sheriff Office," Murden said.

Silva just hopes future thieves will think twice.

"There are people out here, you know, watching so be careful out there they are going to catch you," Silva said.

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