Authorities in Orange County have announced the arrests of 20 people, including five juveniles, allegedly tied to a prolific home burglary crew that hit dozens of homes.
“As of now, we have 35 known burglaries tied to this crew,” said Sheriff Don Barnes at a Thursday news conference. “It is believed that there may be additional burglaries and our investigative teams will continue of their investigation.”
This investigation started last year when authorities connected a burglary in Yorba Linda to two others in unincorporated Santa Ana. Eventually, more than 30 other break-ins in nine cities were linked to the same crew, officials said.
Some of the crimes were captured on home surveillance video and, in some of the cases, the victims were still home at the time.
The thieves made off with more than a half-million dollars’ worth of property including cash, guns and jewelry, authorities said. Nine of the 20 suspects were arrested on Wednesday.
“Every single one of these defendants … is from Los Angeles. You need to report that,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer told reporters. “We’re not seeing in the cases that we filed, extensive criminality of citizens living here in Orange County. So, this is not an Orange County problem. It’s a Los Angeles County problem. But we will solve it in Orange County if L.A. County is not willing to solve it themselves.”
Spitzer says if convicted, some of the adult defendants could face potential sentences of six to 28 years in prison.