SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — These aren’t your average burglars.
Court documents obtained by 12News claim four men who are part of a Chilean National Crime Group are responsible for stealing more than a million dollars worth of valuables from several homes in the Valley.
Scottsdale police investigators say the suspects targeted high-value homes in Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, and Fountain Hills. Close to $900,000 was taken from the Scottsdale area alone, said Scottsdale Police Officer Aaron Bolin. The majority of burglaries were in gated communities.
“To have an organized group, like this is pretty rare,” Bolin said.
Documents show the crime syndicate operated in Arizona, California, Texas, Nevada, and Utah. The first known burglary happening in Arizona occurred last March in a gated community. Mike Larson and his wife had left their Scottsdale home for just a few hours.
“We were six houses down,” Larson said. “It was during the NCAA basketball tournament.”
They locked their doors and have a home security system. However, Larson said he forgot his phone that night.
“If I had it on me, I’d do something quicker,” he said.
When they returned everything seemed normal until they walked into their bedroom. Larson says all the drawers were open, jewelry boxes were thrown on the bed, and someone had rummaged through their closet.
“My wife says, ‘Oh my God we’ve been robbed,'” Larson recalled.
Both noticed on the carpet were shards of glass. Following the trail led them to their back glass door that had been broken. The door located right next to their at home security camera.
The video shows what appears to be two men walking into the home. The cracking of glass can be heard as they make their way to the Larson bedroom.
“You could see the eyes and the nose but you couldn’t get the full face,” Larson says.
It only took 12 minutes for them to take about $25,000 in cash and jewelry before they exited the way they entered.
“They didn’t vandalize the house or do anything else,” Larson said. “They knew what they wanted.”
Larson also noticed that on their backyard table was a rock covered in glass. Believing that’s what the burglars used to break into the home.
A month after the Larson home was hit, there was another reported burglary in the same area that was also caught on home security video. Court documents reveal the suspects, in this case, were in the same clothes seen in the Larson security footage.
Source: 12 News Arizona
