5 Arrested In Series Of Lake Forest, Orange County Burglaries

LAKE FOREST, CA — Five men accused of running a multi-county burglary ring responsible for stealing $1.9 million in designer watches and purses, jewelry, guns, purses, and cash in 44 residential burglaries in Orange and San Bernardino counties were arrested by SWAT teams on Friday.

The five defendants received felony charges, Monday, in connection with the rash of burglaries that began in Chino Hills in August 2019 and continued across Orange County. Homes in Fullerton, Anaheim Hills, Villa Park, Lake Forest, Yorba Linda, Buena Park, and Irvine were robbed through February, according to reports.

Four of the burglaries occurred when residents were home.

The District Attorney’s AB109 Task Force, monitoring the non-violent offenders following their release from state prison, along with the Fullerton, Anaheim, and Buena Park Police Departments, the Orange Sheriff’s Department, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, executed simultaneous search warrants on Friday in Los Angeles County.

Jurandir Endnilson Penate, 24, Erick Daniel Soria, 27, Alvaro Ramos, 37, Eugene Yi, 35, and Sergio Soto, 33, all of Los Angeles, were arrested in the multi-agency operation.

“This case underscores law enforcement's resolve to effectively collaborate, across jurisdictions, to bring criminals to justice,” said Fullerton Police Chief Bob Dunn, who spoke at a Monday morning press conference at the District Attorney’s Office to announce the arrests.

Orange County Assistant Sheriff Jeff Hallock, Buena Park Police Chief Corey Sianez, Anaheim Police Chief Jorge Cisneros, Orange County District Attorney Bureau of Investigation Chief Paul Walters, and Assistant Special Agent in Charge Stephen Galloway of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives were also in attendance at Monday’s announcement.

Soria, who is currently on parole for residential burglary, is facing 83 years and 8 months in state prison if convicted on all charges. Soto, is a third striker with prior convictions for residential burglaries and assault with a deadly weapon, is facing 35 years to life in state prison if convicted on all charges. Ramos, who is currently on parole for residential burglary and evading police, is facing 125 years in state prison if convicted on all charges.

Yi, who has one prior strike for a 2005 great bodily injury conviction, is facing 19 years and 8 months in state prison if convicted on all charges. Penate is facing 55 years and 4 months in state prison if convicted on all charges.

“Ongoing efforts to decriminalize felonies and release state prisoners and jail inmates back into our communities has resulted in an increase in property crime. These are the people who are sneaking into our backyards to steal designer purses, shoes, cash, and guns,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. “This case exemplifies why I started the AB109 Crime Impact Task Force last year to identify parolees who commit new crimes and assist police agencies in their investigations to get these criminals off the streets and back in prison where they belong.”

In order to support the efforts of probation which is now responsible for supervising AB109ers and to further protect the residents of Orange County, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office created a dedicated task force to identify and arrest AB 109ers who commit new crimes.

The AB 109 Crime Impact Task Force, which is housed at the Santa Ana Police Department, is made up of five District Attorney Investigators, one Santa Ana Police Officer, one Orange County Probation Officer, and an Investigative Assistant and a Research Analyst from the District Attorney’s Office.

Since July 2019, the AB 109 Task Force has arrested 128 AB109ers on new crimes, including five attempted murder suspects, four stolen car suspects, and 73 suspects arrested on felonies.
The task force has done 5,840 compliance and reporting checks on AB 109ers and revoked Post Release Community Supervision on 71 convicted felons since July 2019.

The AB 109 Task Force has located wanted subjects in other states, and coordinated their arrests and extradition back to Orange County to face charges.

Penate, Soto, Soria, Yi and Ramos are all being held on no bail at the Orange County Jail. This is an ongoing investigation.