South American organized crime group linked to high-value home break-ins in Union County: Sheriff
UNION COUNTY, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Investigators say the takedown of a suspect by deputies, arresting a man in the middle of a neighborhood in Weddington on Wednesday in Union County, is part of a massive transnational organized crime group from South America targeting and breaking into high-value homes .
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"The days of just smashing the door down and then searching through the house, they're organized now, they have Wi-Fi jammers, they use Zillow, Reddit to look at the layout of the house," said Dan Brunner, a former FBI agent who owns a security firm, The Brunner Sierra Group.
Brunner has spent his whole career dedicated to stopping these criminal organizations.
"A lot of these organized crime entities are from Chile, it's an organized crime entity where they obligate or tell someone who's a complete civilian, listen you're going to go to the United States for four weeks as a tourist, you get a tourist visa, you come to the United States and then they facilitate them robbing different locations, jewelry stores, homes," said Brunner.
On Wednesday in the middle of the day, Union County deputies say Michael Giovanni Bejarano Rodriguez and two other men smashed out a window of a home in the HighGate neighborhood and grabbed some cash and jewelry.
But they got a surprise.
Someone was home, so deputies say the suspects hopped in a car with a standby driver but crashed it into a tree trying to get away.
"What sounded like a bang," described a neighbor who didn't want their name used.
Neighbors watched as the suspects' car was towed away and deputies locked down schools and launched a manhunt, searching for the other two suspects who still haven't been caught.
"It makes you nervous, it makes you a little bit more cautious," said the neighbor.
And Brunner says you should be, especially when it comes to these organized crime groups.
"They're doing advanced intelligence work, the Wi-Fi jammers, they'll go in and jam all the cameras," said Brunner.
Deputies say over the past two years, they've investigated 10-15 similar break-ins in Marvin and Weddington that they believe are connected to South American criminal organizations.
"If someone hits your house and you're inside, just like the situation you were talking about, you know what to do, be prepared," said Brunner.
A month ago, Charlotte Mecklenburg Police made three arrests they say are also connected to South American organized theft groups .
Those arrests stemmed from 18 cases in CMPD's Steele Creek division from this year and last.
Investigators say the suspects targeted homes in the middle of the day to steal luxury items and dressed as construction and lawncare workers to avoid suspicion.
