Articles Posted in Theft Crimes

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A 67-year-old man is facing hundreds of counts of wire fraud and money laundering for alleged participation as what police call a “middle man” in a common type of email scam dubbed “Nigerian prince.”

These shams, so named for many of them originating in Nigeria though they happen all over the world, typically connive people out of personal information such as bank account numbers under the pretense that they are assisting someone from Nigerian royalty in transferring money to the United States. The scammer then offers compensation for their aid. Law enforcement stated that investigating this type of crime poses challenges, “as many leads have led to individuals who live outside of the United States.”

After an 18-month and still ongoing investigation, police arrested Michael Neu on November 28 as they believed he was working with associates in Nigeria and serving as an intermediator in the fraudulent operations.

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On Tuesday, December 19, police arrested a man who they believe participated in 20 or more package thefts throughout several Irvine neighborhoods.

As reported by the Irvine Police Department, after home video surveillance cameras picked up footage of a man stealing delivered packages off doorsteps in Irvine, authorities released photos and a video to news outlets in an attempt to locate the responsible party. 33-year-old Anthony Brian Palusso, a Mission Viejo resident, was identified at a local hotel by someone who had seen the video during a broadcast.

It was discovered that Palusso was in possession of an outstanding warrant, and Garden Grove police picked him up at the hotel and took him into custody.

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Last Wednesday, a California man was accused of using the chimney of a local Citrus Heights pub and grill in an attempted burglary. On his way down the flue he became stuck and unable to proceed with his alleged plan.

Jesse Berube, a regular customer at Loree’s Little Shack on Greenback bar and grill, allegedly tried to use the building’s chimney in order to enter the building after hours. Though the opening was less than 18 inches wide he managed to slide down the flue until he met with an unexpected 90-degree angle where he became lodged in the structure.

32-year-old Berube, having no way to free himself, managed to access his cellphone and called 911 for assistance. Citrus Heights police and the Sacramento Metro Fire Department dispatched to the scene to investigate the reported incident where they discovered Berube stuck down the chimney.

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On Wednesday in Seymour, IN, two teenagers were arrested as the suspects of an incident involving a church that was broken into and desecrated in November.

18-year-old Shawn Battice and a 16-year-old unnamed adolescent allegedly used the double doors in the back of the Seymour First Presbyterian Church to illegally enter the building in the early morning hours of November 24. They stole the money out of a collection box in the basement, and then located five fire extinguishers which were affixed throughout the church. The pair discharged the extinguishers into the basement, youth recreation room, sanctuary and choir room, covering the organ, furniture and pianos with the contents, according to Seymour Police Department Detective Sgt. C.J. Foster. A church trustee reported that the total damage caused was assessed at nearly $10,000.

An official investigation led authorities to the teenagers, and they were taken into custody on Wednesday evening. When Battice was interviewed by detectives he said that he and the 16-year-old did in fact enter the church without consent, and that they stole money and used the fire extinguishers to cause the damage.

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An executive for the cosmetics company Urban Decay has been accused of stealing more than $1 million through bank transfer transactions between the business and fraudulent accounts he created. He is facing felony charges for the allegations.

Irvine resident Ranjeet Reddy Paladugo holds a position as the vice president of finance at the Newport Beach based company Urban Decay. He is suspected of utilizing several banks in order to create fake accounts, which were similarly named after business affiliates of the company, in order to embezzle funds that he transferred from Urban Decay. On July 17 he allegedly stole over $1 million from Urban Decay.

Paladugo purportedly commissioned a transaction in the amount of $598,500 which he transferred through one of the phony accounts. He then transferred that money into his personal bank account. This procedure was repeated again in the same amount, and routed through a second bogus business account. Paladugo is said to have used the stolen money for personal use, including the down payment on a house.

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46-year-old Juan Manuel Rodriguez is employed as an Orange County probation officer. While on assignment with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Tactical Apprehension Team he has been suspected of taking money from the residents of the homes where he assisted in serving search warrants.

On August 8 Rodriguez visited a residence in Santa Ana in order to serve a search warrant. The person being served was distracted during the period that Rodriguez was inspecting their identification card, and they claimed that $150 had gone missing from their wallet. The victim alerted one of the sheriff’s deputies on site immediately after noticing the money was gone.

According to prosecutors, sheriff’s officials made the decision to organize a sting operation two days after the incident was reported in an attempt to apprehend the offender. A vehicle was rigged with a hidden surveillance camera and $1,200 was planted inside.

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A man was driving in an Acura in Anaheim late Monday evening when police ran the plates and identified it as a vehicle from Downey that had been reported stolen earlier that day.

As accounted by Sgt. Daron Wyatt of the Anaheim Police Department, officers pursued the car and the driver continued for approximately one block until he entered a residential area and stopped in the middle of the road. Police suspected there may have been a malfunction with the vehicle which forced him to come to a halt.

The man, identified as Norwalk resident Hector Munoz, then locked himself in the vehicle and refused to cooperate with law enforcement. Police used a PA system and made several attempts to get Munoz to get out of the vehicle, but he allegedly did not comply willingly.

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A Los Angeles man accused of stealing diapers from stores for close to a full year tried to escape police on Wednesday by leading them on a chase that resulted in an accident. A small child was in the car with the driver during the event.

23-year-old Darrion Tyrone Parker, a man Los Angeles County prosecutors have nicknamed the “diaper bandit,” has allegedly been involved in a string of robberies beginning in December 2016 and continuing through Wednesday. He is said to have stolen packages of diapers from various grocery stores and retail outlets in and around Long Beach by using threat of force, according to the DA’s office.

When Parker had attempted a robbery on Wednesday an employee of the store chased him into the parking lot and accosted him about his purported sticky fingers.

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A married couple who own a travel business were charged with embezzlement after they allegedly accepted payment for booking international trips to Japan for San Diego high school band members and their parents, and then cancelled the trips. The company then filed for bankruptcy and the people were not offered refunds for the thousands of dollars they had spent.

Brad and Margie Matheson are the proprietors of a Georgia based travel service called Harmony International. In January 2016, they extended a package to four San Diego area high school’s band departments. The offer was for the school’s band members to take an international trip where parents could accompany their children to Japan.

Brad Matheson presented the offer in a Skype meeting telling parents and students, “If you register before March 1, 2016, for this group, you’ll receive free trip cancellation insurance.” He stated this offer was intended as an added incentive bonus in order to encourage early registration.

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A UC San Diego freshman has been implicated as the perpetrator in the disappearance of hundreds of pairs of underwear taken from the Sixth College dormitory laundry rooms. The thefts reportedly took place over a period of weeks before the suspect was caught in the act by a victim, leading to his arrest.

Weeks before David Chou, the alleged culprit, was captured students of UCSD’s Sixth College saw a sign posted in the area of the resident laundry rooms alerting of more than one incident where underwear was stolen. Several students continued to come forward with claims of missing undergarments, and a few weeks following the first warning a duplicate notice was posted encouraging the students to monitor their laundry at all times to deter the thief.

When one woman who requested to remain anonymous reported to her dorm advisor that an entire washing machine load of her laundry had gone missing containing up to 14 pairs of panties, she was assisted in reporting the event to campus police. They informed her that they were unable to facilitate further than suggesting she bring a companion along while doing laundry in order to better ensure her safety. She vented in a post on social media about what had happened to her, and Chou showed much hubris by leaving a humorous retort in the comment section.

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