The liquor flowed while the steaks were consumed as good times were had by all at a Ridgeland fine dining restaurant on the night of March 1. Unfortunately, the fun soon turned into horror for the owners as "burglary tourists" hit their Bridgewater home while they were at the restaurant.
The thieves were quite professional in their approach as they studied Bridgewater before they made a move. Although gates and walls dominate the front of the subdivision, the rear of the subdivision is bare of such defenses and the rear is where the victims live.
The suspects observed there was a little gravel road behind their home that was outside the subdivision. Only a patch of woods separated the victim's Woodmont Way home from the road. Spotting the flaw in the Bridgwater defenses, they exploited it to perfection. Turning off of Hickory Drive onto the seldom-used Aaron Lane, the thieves outflanked Bridgewater's Maginot Line. Rundstedt would have been proud.
Posted below is a picture of Aaron Lane. The crew could rest easy knowing the road's seclusion gave it the privacy needed to pull off the job.
There is nothing but woods between Bridgewater and Aaron Lane. No gates, no walls, just Mother Nature.
The burglars made their way through the woods at night, undoubtedly using night-vision goggles. They cut through a chain-link fence. Security cameras were useless as they wore hoodies and masks, rendering identification impossible. Law enforcement sources said they spent over an hour in the house as they cracked at least one safe, making off with cash and jewelry. It is a pretty good bet someone observed the victims at the restaurant while the robbery took place. Thankfully, Ridgeland Police were on the job as some good ole-fashioned police work brought two suspects to justice.
Ridgeland Police Chief Bryan Myers said:
Ridgeland’s investigative team arrived and processed the scene thoroughly and downloaded video from the home surveillance system. The area surrounding this residence was canvassed for additional video. The good citizens of Bridgewater were able to supply our investigators with video from their surveillance systems. Through an extensive investigation detectives were able to develop a suspect vehicle. This vehicle was a rental and information from that contract led us to issuing warrants on Gustavo Alberto Sanchez-Machado of Colombia and Benjamin Alexander Rubio Tapia of Chile. Both of these suspects were located by law enforcement officials in the Miami, FL area. Machado and Tapia are now held in the Madison County Detention Center with no bond on charges of Burglary and Conspiracy. Other arrests are forthcoming in this investigation. It is quite probable that this crew is responsible for other high profile crimes across the country. Information regarding this crime has been sent to agencies nationwide for similar methods of operation.
A law enforcement source said the thieves drove straight to Ridgeland from Miami, robbed the home, and drove straight back to Miami, stopping only for food and gas.
It is no coincidence one of the suspects is from Chile. The Los Angeles Times reported in March:
Increasingly over the last five years, police officials say, thieves from South American nations have entered the U.S. for the purpose of committing robberies. In the case of Chile, authorities suspect some criminals are taking advantage of the tourist visa system, which does not require a background check for travelers. Once in the country, police say, they plan heist sprees and fence the loot before dispatching their earnings back home. LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton told The Times that South American theft groups are not new in L.A., but they have become more active in recent months. Although crime statistics show burglaries are on the decline overall, Hamilton said: “The number of crimes tied to these kind of crews are way, way up.” Rest of article.
CNN reported in April:
Prosecutors say the break-in is part of a larger issue in which so-called “burglary tourists” enter the United States from countries that qualify for visa waivers, allowing a visit of up to 90 days without a traditional tourist visa. When the suspects arrive – most often from South America, prosecutors say – they join sophisticated burglary rings that prey on luxury homes...In some cases, the suspects “lie in wait in these ghillie suits so they remain camouflaged,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. “They take advantage of the fact that most people don’t have window sensors or motion detectors on their second floors. They have WiFi jammers to stop the alarm company from being notified.” Spitzer said the stolen goods are often sold quickly and the money is sent back to the suspect’s home country. Most often, that’s Chile, he said, which is now the only remaining South American country that qualifies for the Department of Homeland Security’s waiver program, known as the “Electronic System for Travel Authorization,” or ESTA. The problem extends beyond California. Last month police in Scottsdale, Arizona, reported they arrested three Chilean nationals in connection with what authorities called a “burglary series” in the city. Within the last year, police in Baltimore, Maryland; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Nassau County, New York, were among those announcing arrests in cases of luxury home burglaries linked to Chilean nationals in the US on visa waivers.... Rest of article.
The suspects were denied bond at their initial appearance.
64 comments:
Just wait until the public is disarmed. They'll be using the jammers on isolated farms, and then on whole subdivisions.
Damn! That’s some high speed crooks in operation. Lot of planning beforehand. It’s also a damn good job by the Ridgeland Popo.
Thats f’ing nuts a home in central MS was targeted by thieves from Miami and out of the country. Makes you wonder who or where has a target on their backs.
Glad these citizens were apprehended.
@5:22
Someone’s cousin did some remodeling work there once and told their familia back home about the abundance of riches at this one specific location.
That sounds like total FN nonsense. Randomly picked a home in central MS and drive from Miami and that home happened to have a safe etc? What are the chances? Don’t believe and of that.
6:05, nobody but YOU is saying "randomly".
They are "illegals," because they entered the U.S. under false pretenses.
So they drove from Miami straight to this house? Obviously they knew there was a safe. So the homeowners employed illegals to work on or in their house and news about the safe was sent to these 2 clowns.
7:23PM, that's a possibility. Or someone working on the property employed illegals - or merely employed people who share some affinity with the crime network. Or someone accessed the records of the company which installed the safe. Or someone's drug-addict kid... a neighbor's kid, a builder's kid...
Too, we have no idea whose phone or pc got hacked, or who has a cousin working within some official snooping organization. Maybe somebody's secretary blabbed. Or somebody's kid went to the office with his/her parent, who works with a security company. In some countries, the security companies are among the top offenders.
Remember, our phones, our computers, and our cars, are all recording/transmitting our movements, now, and corrupt functionaries can possibly access such things. I believe there was a Senator from Vermont on the news, tonight, trying to update privacy laws (with little success).
"Anonymous Anonymous said...
Just wait until the public is disarmed. They'll be using the jammers on isolated farms, and then on whole subdivisions.
June 5, 2024 at 4:54 PM"
Rural folks will always have weapons, to this day, out of the way folk in Europe and Australia have long gun or two hidden around.
Something smells about this!
So where is this fine Dining Establishment located where the finest of steaks are consumed, and a good time is had by all ?
They thought Ridgeland was a sanctuary city
That's some pretty bad ass police work.
Very impressive.
These two lads are about to meet their worst fear….DA Bubba Bramlett. He’s going lay the law down on behalf of his constituents.
Even employers now cannot fire people is the info submitted on an I9 form is incorrect. There are PROCEDURES that allow up to 8 days or so to give the Federal government investigative time to verify why name and info came back incorrect, allowing a person time to disappear, etc. These illegals have more rights than taxpaying Americans. Think about that. Remember the raid in South MS a year or so ago, maybe a chicken plant.
this kind of planning is reminiscent of the air france and the lufthansa heists at idelwild airport in new york back in the 1970s by the jimmy burke and henry hill crew.
to 8:56 , there aint nothing bad ass about the ridgeland cops. somewhere along the line they caught a huge break. 99% of the time its an anonymous tip.
ridgeland cops specialized in chicken manure road blocks in order to harass motorists and fake dui charges. thats about far as they can go before getting their ass kicked in court.
How did they get them and not the ring they are part of? They are reporting to someone
A lot of whispers about this robbery. Everyone heard it was a professional job.
Guess what? Ridgeland PD has professionals too.
Thank you. Job well done.
@6:05 read the other two articles if you don’t believe it. It’s their MO for how they operate.
These are some bad hombres.
Turns out the policia in Mississippi can hunt!
Oddly enough, I was working one day recently and needed to get to this same area from somewhat north of there, typed in the address, and Apple took me into Bridgewater this same route. As I was driving, I told my son who was with me, "Not a chance we get to where we need to be down this road" (thought I was familiar with the subdivision), but lo and behold I got exactly where I needed to be without a code. That being said, this was definitely an inside job, glad they tried this somewhere other than Hinds County. Strange how American citizens who have a non-citizen spouse can't get back in the country without the spouse having the Fauci Shot (2024), but these people can do as they please. Almost makes youn wonder...
I’m getting an ever so faint scent of cartel.
Some idiot allowed publishing the story that paints a perfect picture of a house (or houses) which are easy targets, where they are, exactly, the intersecting streets, the remoteness, the woods, everything the next burglar needs except a door key.
Thanks for posting, Kingfish.
“ Anonymous said...
Just wait until the public is disarmed. They'll be using the jammers on isolated farms, and then on whole subdivisions.”
Some of the public may allow themselves to be disarmed. The rural ones for the most part will not.
10:28. Sorry for your DUI arrest. Uber is a phone call away.
Betting the nice house had an alarm system that wasn’t armed. Shame.
If you open my safe without entering a special code in the alarm panel, armed or not, it goes off. Same for gun safe.
If you jam a sensor, it goes off. Everything else is wired.
So how did they know there was a safe with money in it and enough money to make it worth the effort?
I have to wonder if MLS online contributes to these type events. MLS often leaves up listings for homes and pictures of the interior of homes long after the home is sold. I have a second home of 15 years and the original listing is still accessible online to anyone with pictures of the interior contents of the home including artwork (not mine now but the sellers) and other features of the home.
This avenue could provide an easy shopping tool for would be thieves.
AI
@7:09 AM You can request that the photos be deleted by Zillow, Trulia, etc. Easy, smeeshy.
A better, no tech, option would have been a better deterrent.
There are several different breeds.
Get some dogs.
Great reporting, Fish. Haven't seen a thing about this in "Mississippi's Newspaper." Nothing unusual about that when their lead story is about walkable cities. One question: Were the stolen goods recovered and returned?
Doesn't Bridgewater have their own magazine that spotlights and self-promotes it's residents' successes and their homes? Might be a road map for criminals to look into.
3:38 - Wonder if the idiot that posted this elaborate caper, complete with aerial photography of the victim's house knows he's the idiot here.
Stealing from Bridgewater seems to be very popular, including by Property Managers.
I've got a good guess on which "restaurant owners" were victimized. I hope that I'm wrong.
They may have hacked their phone or computer. It's amazing the number of people who electronically save passwords or lock combinations on an electronic device. Banking online is common and several banks have been hacked. Electronic security systems and cameras can be hacked.
These guys are not amateurs and are part of a large criminal enterprise.
to steve at 6:59...you are obviously some cop groupie who thinks cops can do no wrong.
all you got to do is read the newspapers or watch tv to get an idea of what thugs most cops are.
tell me steve , ever hear of the goon squad?
It is curious how they drove from Miami to this one house, without casing it, knowing the homeowner, or having any information? Cartel maybe? Who was the homeowner?
Enjoy your second stay in The Hospitality State, Gustavo and Benjamin.
It will be a much longer one.
Hope home owner association puts up secured fencing & gates now! There would have been a different story if a homeowner or guest had been home during break in! Things can be replaced but not lives!
Nice France 1940 reference
The cartels are indeed coming.
June 5, 2024 at 10:09 PM
The ICE raid was in 2019, but I do remember the MSM doing damage control over it.
Probably easier just to take road private and secure it.
Some of you are trying to work in comments about Trump and Biden. Not getting approved so give it up.
They just went from being tourists on a VISA to long term residents. Kudos!
Even a blind squirrel finds a few nuts.
fish, your blitzkrieg historical reference is lost on these bedwetters.
they wouldn't know the maginot line from the mason-dixon line.
Y’all rich folks keep thinkin your little house keeper that only says gracious to you would never do any wrong. They go home and talk shit about you and your house to plenty of ppl.
Home security and traffic cameras along with interstate tag readers are what solved this crime. Nothing fancy about it.
I'm not trying to work in a comment about Trump or Biden...I'm just stalled on the stupidity of Kingfish for laying out an Aerial and Ground map for future criminals.
But as always, he'll figure a way to excuse his stupid complicity. First, he'll jump MY shit...then he'll stumble around from there.
to 5;37... so what ,its already on goggle earth.
5:37, when this burglary was first reported on, long before the perps were caught, I went to Google Earth in order to understand how the burglars had snuck in and saw the same thing KF just posted. I assure you that criminals with this level of sophistication already know how to use Google Earth and are not using JJ as a burglary planning reference.
Gates are a false sense of security. All anyone has to do is wait for Domimos or FedEx to come by (or any resident for the matter) and follow them in before the gate shuts.
Every pizza driver and realtor in Jackson has a code for their these “exclusive” neighborhoods.
June 6, 2024 at 5:37 PM, are you saying that before a burglar does a job, they first come to this website to get entrance information? I have read some ignorant post on this comment board, but this may take the cake.
It's not a surprise that professional criminals have finally found Mississippi and they will always go to the wealthier neighborhoods.
And yes, they are better at " casing" a target and not impulsive.
For all the hysteria about crime, we had petty criminals and domestic / fight murders for the most part.
5:37PM, I take it you were NOT one of the people who used Google Earth, to connect the dots, after THE SEVEN-YEAR LEAK (of the four-foot wide pipe) caused the creation of TAPWATER FALLS (aka 'Colonial Falls'), whose chlorinated waters flowed down Purple Creek, to cause the failure of THE BRIDGE OVER PURPLE CREEK (while Mayor BabyChok was assuring everyone that the leak depriving the city of water pressure, was "Hiding in the woods, somewhere").
I think it took me three minutes, to connect the dots, using Google Map, backtracking from Colonial Circle. Someone sitting in Santiago, could have done the same, had they wanted to (but why would they? No money on Colonial Circle...). And they certainly could, and DID, examine Bridgewater's perimeter, in the same way (after receiving a tip, through their "network", from someone working inside, or after buying the info on THE DARKWEB - a very scary thing to contemplate).
The people who commit 99% of the robberies and burglaries and home invasions in this state never heard of Google Earth.
Give it a rest Google-Geeks!
@8:01 PM - I thought it was only 96%.
"@8:01 PM - I thought it was only 96%."
Google it, Ernest T.
8:01PM, I'm pretty sure that even if your statistic were accurate, Chilean nationals would fit neatly within that other one percent - with room to spare.
Post a Comment