A massive organized retail theft ring targeting T.J. Maxx stores in the Bay Area and other California locations has been dismantled, with many arrests in San Jose and the recovery of more than $380,000 in stolen products, authorities announced Tuesday.
The Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office announced in a press statement that its retail theft task team arrested eight people on August 12 after executing warrants at four homes and a storage unit with assistance from the District Attorney’s Office, Gilroy Police Department, and Mountain View Police Department. Several additional suspects are still being sought.
The investigation began in May, when T.J. Maxx detectives notified the Sheriff’s Office that an organized crew was targeting various shop locations throughout the Bay Area, sometimes conducting crimes several times each day, according to the office. The stolen merchandise is thought to have been resold at San Jose flea markets.
Detectives from the Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office followed the group’s operations for months, identifying 16 individuals and five sites where stolen material was being held or trafficked. According to the Sheriff’s Office, the team is responsible for at least 80 thefts at T.J. Maxx locations, totaling $53,000 in losses.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, the affected Bay Area stores were in Castro Valley, Colma, Daly City, Dublin, Foster City, Livermore, Redwood City, San Carlos, San Leandro, San Mateo, and San Ramon. The agency reports that they robbed other establishments in Sacramento, San Joaquin, and San Bernardino counties, specifically in Citrus Heights, Tracy, Ontario, and Rancho Cucamonga.
Detectives arrested 20-year-old Christian Hernandez, 44-year-old Esmeralda Hernandez Guzman, and 23-year-old Jazmine Sanchez Valencia at a home on Dobern Avenue east of Mayfair Park and south of Alum Rock Avenue in East San Jose, recovering more than $225,000 in stolen merchandise and illegal drugs, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
A warrant was also served at another East San Jose residence on Giannotta Way, which is just west of N. Capitol Avenue and north of McKee Road. They apprehended Maria Sanchez, 66, and seized more than $100,000 in stolen goods and narcotics, according to the office.
Jose Guzman, 32; Derek Montes Rios, 19; Stephanie Juarez Polvos, 29; and Rigoberto Hernandez Guzman, 36, were all arrested as well. The suspects are charged with organized retail theft, conspiracy, grand theft, and receiving stolen property.
Some of the apprehended individuals, including numerous cousins, have connections, according to the Sheriff’s Office. The office also identified three people who are still at large, as well as five unnamed suspects. Juan Molas, 41; Kevin Calderon, 19; and Jacobo Giron, 26, are the three known suspects who remain at large.
The Sheriff’s Office posted surveillance photographs of the remaining unidentified individuals, urging anybody with information to contact detectives at ORT@shf.sccgov.org.
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