Insidious “tourist robbers” are arriving from other parts of the world through visa programs and targeting luxury homes in the United States — some wearing ghillie suits and waiting for the right moment to strike, authorities said. one prosecutor said. he told CNN.
Police and prosecutors in various wealthy communities continue to pursue international robbery syndicates that enter the country, plunder valuable items from wealthy homeowners, and sell the stolen items to their home countries, primarily South America. I’m trying to send money.
“They’re taking advantage of the fact that most people don’t have window sensors or motion sensors on their second floors,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said. “He has a WiFi jammer to prevent them from notifying the alarm company.”
One law enforcement official suspected there were at least hundreds of “robber tourists” entering the country for 90-day visits without traditional tourist visas.
With visa exemption granted through the Electronic Travel Authorization System, they join a heist gang.
“Hundreds, if not thousands, of people enter the country through the Visa Waiver Program and commit residential burglaries in dozens of cities and neighborhoods across the country,” said Scottsdale Police Chief Jeff Walther. ” he said. he said at a press conference in March.
“This is not a Scottsdale problem, this is not a Valley problem, this is not an Arizona problem. This is a national problem.”
In addition to communities in Arizona and California, police in Baltimore, Nassau County, New York, and Raleigh, North Carolina, arrested the robbery suspect, a Chilean national who is in the U.S. on a visa waiver, CNN reported. .
The victim couple told the outlet that a group of thieves broke into their Southern California home several months ago and made off with 8 million pounds, including a wedding ring and other jewelry locked behind a 6-foot-tall safe. He said he made off with items valued at US dollars.
“They climbed over our fence and broke through our upper bedroom window and got in through there,” Jeff Starr said. “And I immediately started working on the safe.”
“I don’t feel safe in my own home anymore,” said Carol Starr, Jeff’s wife.
Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton told the Los Angeles Times Last month’s outbreak of South American thieves in the California city is not new, but “the number of crimes associated with these types of thieves has increased significantly.”
The paper said that in addition to the Chilean thieves, there were also thieves with ties to Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.
Walther, the Arizona police chief, noted that not all Chileans who enter the United States commit crimes, but the federal government must answer difficult questions about the waiver program.
Mr. Spitzer, the Orange County attorney, reportedly refused to comply with an order that the Chilean government investigate the criminal backgrounds of Chilean nationals using the visa program.
“If you don’t know the criminal history of these people, you can’t tell the judge anything about their background and you can’t make a defense,” he said, according to CNN.
“That means the person will be released without bail and will never come back to pay for their crimes.”
