Irvine police have arrested four men and a woman believed to be part of a transnational organized crime ring, authorities said Friday.
The investigation began at about 1:45 p.m. on Easter Sunday, April 20, when a resident on Cultivate called the Irvine Police Department after getting alerts from his home surveillance system showing males unknown to him inside his residence, police said.
IPD officers responded to the residence, which had been ransacked, and learned that multiple items, including designer purses, shoes and jewelry, had been stolen. The resident provided officers with still-shot photographs of the suspects so they could be on the lookout for any subjects matching the description.
An officer monitoring the perimeter spotted a suspicious vehicle leaving the area and initiated a stop.
"The driver said he was delivering food to a customer through a food delivery phone application, but could not provide the address where he delivered it. During a search of his car, suspicious items were located, leading officers to believe he may be involved in criminal activity," police said.
The driver was arrested for allegedly being unlicensed. He was identified as a 24-year-old Fontana resident Jhon Osorioarias.
"IPD detectives conducted an exhaustive investigation of Osorioarias and determined he was involved with an organized burglary crew," police said.
"Detectives were able to identify several of his associates. Over the past month, detectives conducted daily surveillance of the crew and were able to link them to other burglaries throughout Southern California," the department added.
On Thursday, with the help of the IPD drone team, Real Time Crime Center, and IPD detectives, an operation was conducted that resulted in the arrest of Osorioarias, and his alleged accomplices in the city of Fontana. The other suspects arrested were identified as Jesus Hernandezchavez, 42, Fontana; John Fredy Sanabria, 42, of Fontana; Duber Salarte, 48, of Fontana, and Isneidy Ortiz Valencia, 29, of Colton.
The suspects were booked at the Orange County Jail on various charges, including burglary, conspiracy to commit burglary and possession of narcotics.
Search warrants were served in the cities of Fontana and Colton, where multiple items of evidence were collected, including property linking the group to a residential burglary in Irvine, police said.
Anyone with information about the case was asked to contact Detective Jeff Hause at [email protected], or 949-724-7085.