A CRIME SYNDICATE COMING TO A TOWN NEAR YOU

By Suzanne Sparrow Watson

In the shadowy world of organized crime, a peculiar breed of criminals has emerged: South American Theft Groups. They are burglars often referred to as “crime tourists” because they enter the U.S. legally under the Visa Waiver Program that has been in place with Chile since 2014.  The Chilean waiver is the only one issued to a South American country. It allows Chileans to be in the U.S. for 90 days for either personal or business reasons.  The problem is that for some, their “business” is robbing Americans.  This problem has existed for around five years (with a short break due to Covid travel restrictions) and has recently emerged in the greater Phoenix area.  Since December there have been 111 burglaries netting more than $3 million…and counting!  They almost always hit during the early evening when people are out to dinner, thus earning them the nickname of “The Dinner Time Burglars”.  This group is a growing problem nationally – in the past month there has been a rash of burglaries in Philadelphia, New York, Miami, Edina, MN, Los Angeles, San Diego, Detroit, Ashville NC and Indianapolis, just to name a few.  Their method of operation is consistent:  they enter the backyard of a home either through open space or a golf course, they smash through a glass door or window (thus not breaking the seal on a home alarm sensor), they upend everything in the primary bedroom and bath, and take jewelry, cash, expensive handbags, and other small items.  The average time from beginning to end of their caper is 5-8 minutes.

            The 3 Phoenix Burglars

So… why have they been so successful in eluding capture?  First, there are a LOT of them.  Last week three police officers held a meeting for our homeowner’s group to discuss the overall problem and they said they are seeing an increase in the number of burglary cells because of the ease with which they can obtain visas or enter through the southern border. The detective said that the Chilean crime syndicate has established training camps where the burglars learn how to surveil properties, break through doors and windows, and evade security cameras.  The trainees who are the fastest are the ones sent to the U.S.  When they arrive here they generally rent a high-end car so as not to look out of place when they’re scouting high-end neighborhoods, and they rent homes through Airbnb or VRBO, so they aren’t observed in hotel lobbies or parking lots.  As unnerving as this all is, you would think just setting an alarm and operating security cameras would provide adequate protection.  You would be wrong. A woman across the road from me had jewelry and cash stolen.  She said that her Ring alarm/camera system was on, but it didn’t capture the burglars who entered her home.  And there’s a good reason for that.  The latest tool in their bag of tricks is a Wi-Fi and cellular frequency jammer, that disables security systems and cell phone transmissions.  Last weekend the technology expert, Kim Komando, was exposed to this group when they tried to rob several houses on her street in Phoenix.  Because she recently designed and built her house (and she is a technology expert) her home has a hard-wired security system.  Fortunately for her the burglars moved on from her house but she was able to capture the 22 SWAT team members who swarmed her back yard looking for evidence.  They found several jammers strewn around the area.  Neighbors reported losing their Wi-Fi/phone connectivity, but assumed it was a simple internet outage.  The truth was obviously far scarier.  In that incident the police were able to capture three of the burglars as they tried to escape. According to court records, all three suspects were of Chilean descent, overstayed their visas, and were carrying bogus ID cards from Spain, with fake names and birth dates. 

      A New Friend for Dash?

Over the past three weeks we have had two attempted burglaries in my community.  In the first one the owner came home from walking her dog and surprised the burglars.  The second incident last week involved them shattering a bedroom slider, but they were scared off when they realized the owners were home in another part of the house.  I don’t want to get into a discussion about continuing the visa program or our southern border.  But piggybacking on Bob’s post from last week, it may be time to throw out ALL of our politicians and find some who can find some solutions. For now, all I know is that in twenty-four years of living in this house I have rarely turned on the alarm system.  Now, it’s on all the time.  I have installed more security and have taken extra precautions for my personal security.  I’m thinking of getting Dash the Wonder Dog a friend.  One who bites.  I never thought I would live like this.