Six suspects were arrested in connection to a series of Riverside County train burglaries that resulted in nearly $200,000 worth of merchandise being stolen.
The burglaries targeted cargo trains across several cities and Riverside County sheriff’s deputies worked to track down the locations where the stolen goods were stored.
The suspects were identified as:
- Renato Compean Briones, 29, from Indio
- Carla Virginia Urias Herrera, 39, from Indio
- Jesus Ivan Castillo Ruiz, 28, from Thermal
- Juan Pablo Ortega Hernandez, 38, from Mecca
- Deette Nadine Amezquita Luna 36, from Mecca
- Bernardo Acosta, 39, from Mecca
The months-long investigation began on Aug. 2 when deputies responded to a train burglary near Hammond Road and 68th Avenue in unincorporated Mecca.
Several items that had been removed from the cargo trains were found, but the suspects already fled the scene.
In the following weeks, investigators worked to track down multiple locations where the large amount of stolen goods were believed to be stored.
On Nov. 6, a search warrant was served at a home and storage unit in the 82200 block of Santa Rosa Avenue in Indio. Over $80,000 in stolen merchandise was discovered at the property. Two suspects, Brinoes and Herrera, were arrested at the scene.
Another search warrant was served at a home in the 88800 block of 62nd Avenue in Thermal where over $12,000 worth of stolen items was found. One suspect, Castillo Ruiz, was taken into custody.
On Nov. 21, a search warrant was served at a property in the 65100 block of Calle Sor Juana in the unincorporated community of Mecca and a storage unit in the 53300 block of Highway 111 in Coachella. Over $76,000 in merchandise was recovered from the residence and storage unit. Two suspects, Hernandez and Luna, were arrested
The next day on Nov. 22, Thermal Sheriff’s Station deputies responded to a train burglary in the area of Hammond Road in Mecca. They found several open train containers with missing merchandise and a vehicle parked at the location, but no suspect was found at the scene.
On Dec. 4, a search warrant was served at a storage unit in the 53300 block of Highway 111 in Coachella where over $26,000 worth of stolen goods were found. On Dec. 10, the related suspect, Acosta, was located and arrested.
In total, around $194,000 worth of stolen goods were recovered. The group of suspects will face a variety of charges including burglary, possession of stolen property, violation of probation, possession of burglary tools, grand theft and conspiracy.
The series of thefts remains under investigation. Anyone with information on the case is encouraged to call Deputies Hernandez and Padilla at the Thermal Sheriff’s Station at 760-863-8990.
