An unlocked car door invites young car thieves to steal packages worth thousands
The biggest deterrent for thieves is a locked door, however one San Jose resident is feeling the bite for not doing just that.
Suspect 18-year-old Angel Isaiah Guerrero of Gilroy was arrested for vehicle burglary just minutes after the San Jose Police responded to the owner of a vehicle who had lost more than $2,000 worth of items in an unlocked car on December 20. The victim of the car theft was able to flag down police in the Wal-Mart parking lot at 5506 Monterey Road in San Jose to report the theft the next day.
The victim had been searching for his stolen property on craigslist.org, and came across an ad that had possibly placed those very items up for sale. After contacting the owner of the ad, the suspect had made a deal to buy the stolen items and requested the police’s help to help recover his stolen items.
Officers waited with the victim and located Guerrero with a 17-year-old juvenile male suspect, who was acting as a lookout/bodyguard for Guerrero inside the Wal-Mart store, as they approached the victim for the sale.
The juvenile was found to be on searchable probation for a previous robbery conviction. Both suspects admitted to being the ones who had burglarized the victim’s vehicle prior to trying to sell the stolen items. Recovering the juvenile’s phone, text messages revealed a deal struck between him and the suspect Guerrero, agreeing to split the profits from the sale.
The young suspect was cited and released to his guardian. He is facing now facing a probation violation and other possible charges related to the vehicle theft. The suspect pleaded no-contest on Jan 12, and is expected to be sentenced.
