A gaggle of Southern Californians allegedly stole mail and checks from publish places of work all through Los Angeles and Orange counties, typically hitting a number of areas in a single day — then turned to social media for assist cashing in on their haul.
Authorities are accusing Antonio Hernandez and confederates Ivan Murillo-Hernandez and Alexis Garcia Martinez of ripping off mail from unsuspecting venues with the assistance of 4 juveniles, whose names weren’t launched. They then allegedly went on social media to solicit individuals with financial institution accounts to assist them fraudulently money the stolen checks.
Verify quantities ranged from the low 4 figures — $1,500, $1,725 and $1,800 — to a whopping $555,099.14 on one gentle pink enterprise examine. Complete damages to monetary establishments tallied greater than $800,000 over a 10-month spree that resulted in August 2023, authorities allege.
Generally the examine crew would even publish Instagram reels of their police chases or of them flashing 1000’s of {dollars} in money, asking followers for likes, in keeping with courtroom paperwork.
A grand harm responded to their consideration requests final week with indictments in opposition to Hernandez, Murillo-Hernandez and Martinez on felony costs, together with financial institution fraud, conspiracy to commit financial institution fraud, aggravated id theft, theft of a publish workplace and mail theft.
The three are anticipated again in U.S. District Court docket in Los Angeles on June 20 for a pretrial convention.
Hernandez and Alexis Garcia Martinez’s authorized illustration couldn’t be reached. The lawyer representing Murillo-Hernandez didn’t supply a remark.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, a federal company that protects postal amenities and mail carriers and investigates crimes involving mail, anchored the investigation into the examine ring with the assistance of regulation enforcement companies from numerous counties.
The 22-page indictment accuses the crew of varied incidents throughout Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino County between Nov. 14, 2002 and Aug. 18, 2023.
Lots of the publish places of work they hit both had unlocked doorways, again entrances, docks or unmanned areas that enabled the thefts.
On April 4, 2023, crew members allegedly stole mail from an Upland publish workplace through an open again door, in keeping with courtroom paperwork. Hernandez, who the Postal Inspection Service believes is a member of the Northeast Los Angeles Avenues gang, is alleged to have pushed a postal worker who tried to take a photograph of the license plate of the getaway car, a silver Toyota Camry.
That very same day, the indictment alleges, Hernandez, Murillo-Hernandez and three co-conspirators stole mail from an Anaheim publish workplace, then drove to a restaurant car parking zone on South State Faculty Boulevard and opened the pilfered mail. Envelopes that contained checks had been stored whereas every thing else was discarded into a close-by dumpster.
When an Anaheim Police cruiser pulled close to the silver Camry, the crew fled in what turned a high-speed chase on the 57 and 60 freeways, in keeping with courtroom paperwork.
The crew reached Rowland Heights earlier than stopping and abandoning the car on foot, the indictment alleges, and Hernandez and one different individual efficiently evaded seize.
One of many alleged co-conspirators who was caught posted a video that night of a police automotive blasting its warning lights, apparently as seen from the passenger-side rearview mirror of the automotive being pursued. The co-conspirator requested followers to “like” the publish, in keeping with courtroom paperwork.
A couple of month handed earlier than one other duo of co-conspirators stole checks from the docks of a publish workplace in El Segundo on June 8, in keeping with courtroom paperwork. That day, the indictment alleges, the crew additionally hit a publish workplace in West Hills. It’s in that theft that the group ripped off a examine for $555,099.25 from a West Hills enterprise’ Chase Checking account, the indictment says.
The next day, an Instagram story from a co-conspirator was reposted by Hernandez that confirmed three stolen pink checks from a Chase account, in keeping with the indictment. A caption learn, “The lil homie got here via with the slips. Thanks, my boy.” Slips, on this reference, is slang for checks.
Regardless of their brassiness, the gang was additionally deterred by small measures, authorities say.
They fled a La Mirada publish workplace on March 2, 2023, as a result of a postal worker approached them, the indictment says. Two days later, an try and hit a La Cañada Flintridge publish workplace was thwarted by a locked door, in keeping with courtroom paperwork.
As soon as they stole checks, nonetheless, they turned to social media for a payday, the indictment alleges. The crew seemed for individuals with long-established financial institution accounts to money the checks so they might entry their cash extra rapidly, in keeping with courtroom paperwork.
To steer third events to money the checks, crew members typically claimed to be the rightful recipients and supplied to share a portion of the proceeds, hiding the truth that the checks had been stolen, the indictment alleges. A few of the crew additionally bought stolen checks slightly than cashing them, in keeping with courtroom paperwork.
Legislation enforcement finally caught up with Hernandez and the one alleged co-conspirator who’d evaded seize on Aug. 18, 2023, raiding the house they shared.
Hernandez printed one final Instagram story that day, in keeping with courtroom paperwork, saying, “I bought raided by FBI earlier delete something you bought of [sic] me.”
