BOULDER, Colo. — A grand jury in Boulder County has indicted 12 people in connection with a crime ring accused of stealing more than $300,000 worth of construction materials.
The Boulder County District Attorney's Office said in a release Friday that the group would case lumber yards or places with building materials to find items to steal. When they did find things they wanted to steal, the district attorney's office said, they would come back at night to complete the thefts.
The DA said they would often cut a hole in the fence to get inside and load the building materials into trucks before taking off. The building materials were often taken to storage units in the metro area and placed for sale on social media, prosecutors said.
According to the release, the defendants are responsible for more than 28 construction thefts with a total value of just over $310,000. Property damage totaled about $15,000.
The jurisdictions where the crimes happened included Adams County, Boulder County, Douglas County and Denver, according to the release, and the cases will be prosecuted in Boulder County.
The following people have been taken into custody:
- Abiel Castillo-Medina
- Jesus Castillo-Medina
- Arturo Reza Olivan
- Alejandro Pineda-Vergara
- Esperanza Hernandez
- Wilfredo Martinez-Castejon
- Bryan Macias Espinoza
- Samuel Pineda-Vergara
- Manuel Cardoza-Peregrino
- Rubi Rivera
- Jose Pineda-Vergara
The 12th defendant is still at large, the DA said, and his name has not being released yet. All 12 defendants face a sentence of up to 24 years in prison on organized crime charges as well as additional prison sentences on felony theft charges.
“The Lafayette Police Department values our community’s safety and security," Lafayette Police Chief Rick Bashor said in a statement. "The outcome of this large investigation was the result of solid teamwork by area law enforcement agencies, led by the members of the City of Lafayette Police Department. We appreciate the hard work and dedication from everyone involved to make this a success.”
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