A surveillance operation led detectives to discover a semi-truck filled with $1 million worth of stolen electronic devices. (Fremont Police Department)
Police in the San Francisco Bay Area have linked numerous car break-ins to a multimillion-dollar crime operation that involves the sale of computer tablets and laptops on the black market in Vietnam.
A joint investigation by Fremont police and the Santa Clara County district attorney’s office culminated in eight people charged, and more than $2 million in stolen goods seized, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
“We want people to know the level of crime this is,” Fremont police Lt. Mike Tegner said. “This isn’t just a normal property crime.”
An investigation identified Carlos Paz, 28, as the main ‘fence,’ a term for people who buy stolen items from street-level thieves and resell them.
During a surveillance operation, investigators followed Paz to a storage container with a stash of stolen electronic devices – mainly laptops – at a facility in San Jose, police said.
Investigators followed a semi-truck that left the facility and pulled it over on Interstate 880. The semi-truck contained $1 million worth of stolen electronics, which investigators believe were to be shipped to Southeast Asia.
Authorities believe the $2 million operation was a family affair. On Friday, 8 suspects were arraigned in connection with the operation, and charged with felony possession of stolen property and conspiracy.
Police are still investigating.
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
