Organized South American crew wanted for bank heists in Fresno and Valley, affidavit says
An organized South American crew of alleged bank robbers are wanted by the FBI for a string of heists of more than $1.6 million in Fresno and several California cities since June, according to an unsealed affidavit obtained by The Bee on Wednesday.
The court record lays out the probable cause for the arrest of 10 foreign nationals — eight from Chile and two from Venezuela and Peru — accused of using surveillance and power tools to break into 15 ATMs throughout the central San Joaquin Valley and Southern California between June and September.
The crew would rent Airbnb vacation rentals and SUVs in locations near the planned heists and sometimes case the location before later returning to commit the larceny, the affidavit says.
They wore brightly colored construction vests and helmets, as well as surgical masks commonly worn during the pandemic, while using blowtorches, prybars, sledgehammers and other tools to take cash from the ATMs, the court records show.
They also sprayed paint onto surveillance cameras and would sometimes use a tarp to conceal their efforts, according to the affidavit.
Most of the heists took place in the evening or early morning hours, but at least one was midday, according to the affidavit. While some of their attempts were unsuccessful, others led to hundreds of thousands of dollars in a single heist.
The affidavit says the alleged bank robbers stole more than $1.6 million taken total. Their largest single score of $312,000 came from a credit union in Clovis.
The banks hit included three in Fresno, two in Temecula, and one each in Clovis, Lakewood, Long Beach, Mission Viejo, Modesto, Oxnard, Rocklin, Stockton, Torrance and Yuba City, the affidavit says.
Agents also connected the crew to stays in vacation rentals in Portland and Seattle, the court record shows.
There agents found “hundreds of pounds” of the power tools consistent with those used in each break-in as well as heavy duty ropes, goggles, cellphone jammers and other equipment like the heavy duty toolboxes the crew can be seen dragging in surveillance videos at the banks.
This story was originally published October 23, 2024 at 5:17 PM.
