Crime & Safety
Burglary Ring Striking Walnut Creek, Dozen Other Cities, Busted
San Jose Police arrested 10 people for the burglaries committed around the Bay Area, including Walnut Creek.
WALNUT CREEK, CA — A burglary ring that operated in a dozen Bay Area cities including Walnut Creek was busted up this week, according to San Jose Police. They announced 10 arrests and recovered stolen property.
The crew focused on bike shops, construction sites and school districts, police said. Officers recovered firearms, stolen driver's licenses, narcotics, ammunition, drug paraphernalia, stolen credit cards and stolen property.
Six suspects taken into custody on Thursday in San Jose and Sunnyvale were Joseph Presti, 49, Paul Neale, 33, Rodney Arrieta, 54, Lilia Mendoza, 42, Carlos Lames, 53, and Morgan Stevenson, 39.
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The six were the first to be arrested as part of the crew that allegedly carried out burglaries in Walnut Creek, Pleasanton, Dublin, Fremont, San Jose, Cupertino, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Santa Cruz, Burlingame, Los Altos, Morgan Hill, and Oakland, according to police.
The six were booked into Santa Clara County jail on suspicion of multiple felony charges, including commercial burglary.
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By Friday, police had arrested another four suspects in the burglaries.
Police served multiple search warrants at a storage locker in Sunnyvale, at three recreational vehicles in San Jose, and another in the 1600 block of Willowgate Drive, where police arrested Ramiro Lozano, 44, Andrea Reyes, 29, John Tamez, 33, and Veronica Lozano, 40.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Lt. Greg Lombardo of the San Jose Police Department's burglary prevention unit at 408-537-1200.
Tips can be provided using the tipline.
Persons wishing to remain anonymous may either call the Crime Stoppers Tip Line at (408) 947-STOP (7867) or submit a tip online. Persons providing information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect may be eligible for a cash reward from the Silicon Valley Crime Stoppers.
— Patch editor Bea Karnes and Bay City News contributed to this story
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