South American Burglary Ring Targeted Mendota Heights Homes: Feds

MENDOTA HEIGHTS, MN — Four South American men living in the U.S. illegally were indicted after authorities linked them to a $1 million burglary ring that targeted homes in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Florida, federal prosecutors said.

Three homes in Mendota Heights were targeted last year as part of the burglary ring, according to Mendota Heights police.

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A federal grand jury in Wisconsin on Tuesday indicted Chilean nationals Luciano Alexis Silva Cifuentes, Enjerbet Alejandro Rojas Silva and Leandro Felipe Pino Uribe, along with Venezuelan national Nobuaki Jesus Lara Watay, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin announced.

The men were charged with conspiracy to violate U.S. laws, interstate and foreign transportation of stolen property, and conspiracy to launder criminal proceeds, prosecutors said.

According to publicly filed criminal complaints cited by prosecutors, the case began as an investigation by the Waukesha County Sheriff's Office before the Milwaukee area Homeland Security Task Force joined.

Prosecutors said the Chilean defendants were in the U.S. illegally and traveled from South America to commit burglaries across the country.

The group is accused of being tied to more than a dozen completed and attempted residential burglaries in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Florida, with losses totaling about $1 million, according to federal prosecutors.

The stolen property included cash, jewelry, firearms, precious metals, and rare coins, prosecutors said.

Federal prosecutors said the defendants repeatedly traveled from Florida to Wisconsin and Minnesota by rental car.

Watay, who prosecutors said was living in the U.S. illegally in Florida, is accused of supporting the burglary crew by reserving Airbnb rentals, posting bail when needed and conducting financial transactions on the group's behalf.

Mendota Heights police said the department's investigations division helped identify the group and link them to the burglaries.

"Our ultimate goal is to prevent crime, but when we fail to prevent it, we will work hard to solve it and hold people accountable," Mendota Heights Police Chief Kelly McCarthy said in a statement.

McCarthy specifically credited Crime Analyst Shayna Hoechst for her work on the case.

"The crime analyst position is new to the Mendota Heights Police Department and it is paying off in spades," McCarthy said.

The charges carry maximum penalties of up to five years in prison for conspiracy, up to 10 years for transporting stolen property across state or foreign boundaries, and up to 20 years for conspiracy to launder criminal proceeds.