{"id":384013,"date":"2026-08-28T23:24:14","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T23:24:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/384013\/"},"modified":"2026-08-28T23:24:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T23:24:14","slug":"the-case-of-the-missing-cinnamon-rolls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/384013\/","title":{"rendered":"The case of the missing cinnamon rolls"},"content":{"rendered":"

A viral Fort Lauderdale baker thought her missing cinnamon rolls were stolen. Turns out, they went missing during an immigration bust.<\/p>\n

College student Julie Pierre, 21, feared the worst when her 350 rolls failed to arrive at Hollywood\u2019s Yellow Green Farmers Market last Saturday \u2014 and suspected the Uber courier had vanished with her sweet delivery (valued at $3,100).<\/p>\n

\u201cOur Uber driver stole over 300 cinnamon rolls,\u201d she posted on social media, sharing screenshots of the order with the combined\u00a0476,000 followers of her bakery, Roll & Dough. \u201cI don\u2019t think you guys understand how unbelievable that is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Except there was a hitch in this heist theory: It never happened.<\/p>\n

The Uber driver had, in fact, been \u201ctaken into custody\u201d by U.S. Border Patrol during the delivery, according to officials with the Sunrise Police Department and U.S. Customs and Border Protection\u00a0(CBP).<\/p>\n

Agents arrested the driver, Ivan Dario Rico Molano, around 8:50 a.m. Aug. 22 on southbound Interstate 95 near Sheridan Street \u201cfollowing a records check on a silver Kia Carnival,\u201d a CBP spokesperson said via email on Friday.<\/p>\n

Molano, a Colombian citizen, \u201cadmitted to being in the United States without legal authorization\u201d and was \u201ctransported to the Dania Beach Border Patrol Station for processing,\u201d the spokesperson added. \u201cRecords indicate he entered the United States legally in May 2021, but remained beyond his authorized period of stay.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a statement to the Sun Sentinel, Officer Victor Fortune, a Sunrise police spokesperson, confirmed that Molano was taken into custody.\u00a0\u201cDuring the encounter with U.S. Border Patrol [CBP], the driver was permitted to contact another individual to take possession of the vehicle, which contained the cinnamon rolls and associated storage containers,\u201d Fortune said.<\/p>\n

Sunrise police returned the pastries to Pierre on Thursday, Fortune added.<\/p>\n

But it was too late. \u201cWe had to throw them all away,\u201d Pierre said. \u201cWe\u2019re still out $3,100. Stolen or not, we suffered a loss.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Roll<\/p>\n

Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n

Roll and Dough owner Julie Pierre of Fort Lauderdale spoke to Sunrise police officers at her Sunrise commissary bakery on Tuesday after hundreds of her cinnamon rolls went missing. (Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
\n\u2018Strange and wild situation\u2019<\/p>\n

In an Instagram post<\/a> on Thursday, Pierre apologized for accusing the Uber driver of stealing, adding: \u201cWhen we first spoke publicly, we were sharing the information that we had at the moment. I am deeply sorry for Ivan and his family experiencing this. I hope that Ivan and his family are able to get reunited together.\u201d<\/p>\n

The GoFundMe account<\/a> she created after the rolls went missing remains active, raising more than $4,130 as of Friday afternoon. Pierre said she plans to donate \u201ca certain amount of funds\u201d toward the Uber driver\u2019s legal aid.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just a strange and wild situation,\u201d Pierre said. \u201cI feel bad for Ivan, but I felt I had a responsibility to tell my fans the truth as I learned it, even if I had to correct myself later.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pierre told the Sun Sentinel that Uber refunded the cost of her rideshare order.<\/p>\n

Uber initially \u201cremoved the driver\u2019s access to the platform\u201d after the theft accusation, spokesperson Sarah Casasnovas said via email on Tuesday. She did not respond to a follow-up inquiry on Friday\u00a0regarding the driver\u2019s arrest.<\/p>\n

\"People<\/p>\n

Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n

People line up at Roll & Dough at Yellow Green Farmers Market in Hollywood on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2026. (Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
\nA viral sensation<\/p>\n

Roll & Dough has attracted hundreds of customers to its farmers market stall since it began selling Japanese milk bread cinnamon rolls there on Aug. 1, turning out flavors such as apple pie, blueberry cobbler and Biscoff cookie butter.<\/p>\n

Pierre, a Florida International University student majoring in criminal justice, said she created her cinnamon roll side hustle as a survival strategy after her financial aid got delayed.<\/p>\n

At her strip-mall commissary kitchen in west Sunrise, Pierre and three assistant bakers take turns rolling and sheeting dough, before covering it in fillings such as blueberry streusel and cinnamon-coated apples that she mixes by hand. She scratch-bakes 850 rolls each week to sell at the market on weekends.<\/p>\n

\"Roll<\/p>\n

Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n

Roll & Dough owner Julie Pierre with apple and blueberry fillings for her popular cinnamon rolls. (Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n

Ten straight hours of baking are edited into 90-second reels of prep work on Roll & Dough\u2019s social pages, which Pierre, who is soft-spoken yet brutally honest, overlays with confessional voiceovers.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy body is traumatized from the amount of work I put myself through,\u201d Pierre said in a recent video. \u201cBut this kitchen makes me feel like I\u2019m not working despite the fact that I clearly am.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pierre said it\u2019s her narrations that \u201cprobably made me go viral.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was insane. I still don\u2019t believe the bakery is this big. It hasn\u2019t really settled in my mind yet,\u201d said Pierre, who plans to open a brick-and-mortar bakery in Fort Lauderdale\u2019s Thrive District this fall.<\/p>\n

Last Saturday, customers waited in line at Roll & Dough\u2019s stall, while news of the missing rolls spread.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not sure Julie knows how big she is,\u201d said Wendy Almonte, who stood second in line as the stall opened at 11 a.m. \u201cShe has a goldmine in her hands.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sun Sentinel features writer Phillip Valys can be reached at pvalys@sunsentinel.com<\/a> or Twitter\/X @philvalys<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Roll<\/p>\n

Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n

Roll & Dough owner Julie Pierre prepares fillings in Sunrise on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026. (Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)
\n\"Offerings<\/p>\n

Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n

Roll & Dough offerings are displayed at Yellow Green Farmers Market in Hollywood on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2026. (Mike Stocker\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n

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