Robbery scheme running from Florida to RI used drones and GPS trackers to monitor victims
PROVIDENCE − An investigation into the activities of foreign nationals who mounted elaborate surveillance operations as they burglarized victims in eight states has led to the arrest of a fourth conspirator, federal prosecutors said Friday.
The 20-year-old Chilean man was held on the orders of U.S. Magistrate Judge Lincoln D. Almond after his initial appearance before Almond in U.S. District Court, Providence.
The man was arrested in Ohio last month.
Three other defendants, one from Bangladesh, another from Mexico and a third from Colombia, have already pleaded guilty in the case and face sentencing.
The burglars' conspiracy targeted business owners who were typically of "Asian descent," surveilling victims at their homes and businesses, prosecutors say.
Their surveillance techniques incorporated tools such as drones and GPS trackers, which were placed on vehicles, to trace the movements of the targets.
Tracking helped the burglars determine when the victims they were targeting were away from home, prosecutors say.
The ring also employed drones and lookouts to monitor police, they say.
More: Authorities link four men to series of home break-ins targeting Indians, South Asians
The burglars took large sums of money, jewelry, credit and debit cards, and other valuable items, prosecutors say.
In one case in Jacksonville, Florida, the conspirators took $500,0000 worth of property.
The crimes, they say, took place in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Wisconsin, and Florida.
All four defendants were charged with conspiracy to transport stolen property over state lines.
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Foreigners charged in multi-state burglary ring face justice in RI
