Police smash international shoplifting syndicate
Police have smashed an international organised crime syndicate suspected of stealing more than a million dollars in luxury goods, designer clothing and sporting gear from homes and stores across the country and overseas.
The syndicate, comprised of Chilean tourists and students, is allegedly responsible for a shoplifting and burglary spree that stretches from a Victoria’s Secret outlet in California to sporting stores in Melbourne and luxury homes and designer stores in Sydney. The illicit goods were allegedly posted back to Chile or converted into cash before being transferred overseas.
The syndicate was broken by NSW Police Strike Force Merengue, leading to a series of arrests in November and December. Two suspects were arrested at Sydney International Airport.
All Chilean nationals, they have been charged with stealing jewellery, luxury items and cash worth at least A$1.2 million (NZ$1.25m) from homes in Vaucluse and Rose Bay and from designer stores around the city. Some of those arrested also faces charges of making false statements to immigration officials and dealing with the proceeds of crime.
Another two suspects alleged to be involved in the Sydney syndicate were arrested in Melbourne in early December after a week-long theft spree at shopping centres in Chadstone, Ringwood, Knox and Doncaster.
The haul included 662 items of sporting apparel and merchandise from Rebel Sport, 36 purses and clutch bags from TK Maxx, and various other items with a combined worth of more than A$27,000.
Among the items were T-shirts, singlets, leggings, jeans, watches, purses and baseball caps, all with the tags still attached.
Authorities have also identified more than 30 international money transfers worth A$75,000 sent to unknown recipients in Santiago, Chile.
The duo were arrested in Melbourne’s northern suburbs.
Inside their rental car were magnets, pliers, wire cutters and ‘‘booster bags’’, foil-lined bags used to avoid anti-shoplifting technology.
Anastassia Saavedra Urzua, a 19-year-old Chilean national, received a 30-day prison sentence after pleading guilty in Melbourne Magistrates Court just before Christmas for theft, dealing with the proceeds of crime and making false declarations to immigration authorities.
She is expected to be extradited to NSW to potentially face charges from Strike Force Merengue. Saavedra Urzua could also be facing extradition to the United States after she was accused of being part of a group of Chileans that stole a trove of lingerie from a Victoria’s Secret outlet in a Californian mall, according to documents tendered to the Melbourne Magistrates Court.
In July 2018, Saavedra Urzua was with three other Chileans in the San Fernando Valley, outside Los Angeles, when police raided their hotel rooms.
Apart from the lingerie, hundreds of discarded security tags were also found along with shopping bags lined with aluminum foil.
According to US police, Saavedra Urzua and her co-accused posed as two couples.
While one couple distracted the store’s sales staff, the other couple loaded lingerie into the bags.
While under watch by the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, Saavedra Urzua is understood to have fled the US, before arriving in Australia a few months later.
Another Chilean convicted in Melbourne along with Saavedra Urzua is Felipe Andres Herrera Rojas, who is also facing extradition to NSW.
He pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates Court to making false statements to immigration authorities, dealing with the proceeds of crime, and theft.
Law enforcement authorities have been working with Chilean police to seize some of the goods as they pass through the mail.
‘‘This has been a sophisticated and meticulous investigation; spanning not just across Australia but across the Pacific Ocean,’’ said Detective Superintendent Daniel Doherty, NSW robbery and serious crime squad commander.
– Fairfax
‘‘This has been a sophisticated and meticulous investigation; spanning not just across Australia but across the Pacific Ocean.’’ Detective Superintendent Daniel Doherty, NSW robbery and serious crime squad commander