According to prosecutors, the 7 men charged in the theft had various immigration statuses, ranging from full U.S. citizenship to being in the country without permission.
No one was held at gunpoint, there were no injuries, and the thieves made away with more than $100 million worth of jewelry in a matter of minutes.
Without a single witness, the robbery crew stole 24 bags filled with Rolex watches, emerald rings, diamond earrings, gold necklaces, and a lavender jade stone the size of a cicada.
For three years, it looked like the heist of the century.
Until June 17, when federal authorities announced charges against seven men in connection with the July 2022 theft from a Brinks semitruck in Southern California.
In addition to the massive robbery, which the U.S. Attorney’s Office considers to be the “largest jewelry heist in U.S. history,” the men were charged in a series of thefts from various cargo trucks starting in March 2022.
“They were definitely professional, organized, and prepared,” Jena MacCabe, an assistant U.S. Attorney prosecuting the case, told USA TODAY. “They clearly had a system worked out that was very successful, and they were able to take cargo load after cargo load.”
She said the men had various immigration statuses, ranging from full U.S. citizenship to being in the country without permission.
Here’s how authorities believe they carried out the jewelry heist, what other thefts they’re charged in, and how investigators said they nabbed them.
How the jewelry heist went down
Prosecutors said the robbery crew was scouting an international jewelry show on July 10, 2022, just south of San Francisco in San Mateo when they saw the Brinks truck being loaded with a virtual treasure chest of goods.
But they didn’t strike right away. Instead, they followed the truck and waited for the right moment.
For 300 miles, prosecutors said they tailed the truck south to a gas station in the small, unincorporated community of Lebec, about 70 miles northwest of Los Angeles. When the truck’s driver and guard went inside, the men struck, quickly breaking in and making away with the bags under the cover of night, MacCabe told USA TODAY.
They were so careful that some of the men were acting as lookouts, which could explain why they didn’t take all the booty. Out of 73 bags containing millions of dollars worth of jewelry, they took 24, prosecutors said.
Realizing they had hit the jackpot, MacCabe said the men tried to cover their tracks as best they could and even deactivated their cellphone numbers. Then they seemingly disappeared.
Prosecutors: Heist was the first of a half dozen
The first theft connected to the robbery crew happened on March 2, 2022, when they followed a truck carrying Samsung electronics and robbed it when the driver made a quick stop east of Los Angeles in Ontario, California, prosecutors said.
Some of the men distracted the driver in the store while the rest stole goods worth $240,000, according to a federal indictment unsealed on Tuesday, June 17.
Other thefts that prosecutors are attributing to the men:
- March 11, 2022: The robbery of a box truck containing Apple AirTags from China that were being delivered to a warehouse in Fontana, California. The men struck when the driver stopped for food, though he returned sooner than expected, prompting one of the men to threaten him with a knife, prosecutors said. The driver was left unharmed, and the men got away with $57,000 worth of AirTags.
- May 25, 2022: The robbery of a semitruck with Samsung electronics. The men broke into the truck using a crowbar and made away with $14,000 in goods, according to prosecutors.
The next theft in the series was the jewelry heist.
How investigators solved the crime
MacCabe wasn’t able to share many details of how investigators solved the crimes, but she said cellphone data was key despite the men deactivating their numbers.
Though there were no witnesses, MacCabe said investigators recovered surveillance footage, including from the Flying J gas station in Lebec, where the jewelry theft occurred.
“It really was the diligence of the investigators talking with the victims, reviewing all the surveillance footage, looking at the cars that were involved, looking at cell phone records, and trying to figure out who these people were,” she said. “And it was the combination of all of that that helped us be able to identify these seven that we charged.”
The jewelry belonged to jewelers from various states who were showing off their wares at the California show, she said.
Prosecutors said they recovered some jewelry while serving search warrants on June 16, but didn’t specify how much. MacCabe said it was less than half of the amount stolen but that investigators are still working to track the rest down.
She also said it was unclear how the men were spending any proceeds from the theft.
“We don’t have any information about them spending lavishly,” she said. “I think as we continue to investigate this and look into what’s been going on the past few years with these defendants, we’ll know more. But right now, I don’t know what they’ve done with all the spoils from this.”
What are the men charged with?
Prosecutors identified the men they’ve indicted, where each was living most recently, and what charges they face.
- Carlos Victor Mestanza Cercado, 31, Pasadena, California.
- Jazael Padilla Resto, a.k.a. “Ricardo Noel Moya,” “Ricardo Barbosa,” and “Alberto Javier Loza Chamorro,” 36, is currently an inmate at an Arizona prison.
- Pablo Raul Lugo Larroig, a.k.a. “Walter Loza,” 41, Rialto, California.
- Victor Hugo Valencia Solorzano, 60, Los Angeles.
- Jorge Enrique Alban, 33, Los Angeles.
- Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores, 42, Upland, California.
- Eduardo Macias Ibarra, 36, Los Angeles.
They’re all charged with two counts of conspiracy to commit theft from interstate and foreign shipment and theft from interstate and foreign shipment. Mestanza, Padilla, Lugo, Valencia, and Alban are also charged with two counts of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery and interference with commerce by robbery. Padilla is jailed in Arizona for third-degree burglary with unlawful entry.
USA TODAY wasn’t immediately able to identify attorneys representing the men. MacCabe was unable to identify which of the men had legal permission to be in the United States and which did not.
Mestanza, Padilla, Lugo, Valencia, and Alban face up to 20 years in prison. Flores and Ibarra face up to 15 years, prosecutors said.
