The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office reported that one adult and three teenagers have now been charged with the brazen daytime invasion of an Evergreen area home in southeast San Jose. After detectives investigated the burglary, they found that the homeowners’ own 17-year-old son was the mastermind behind the crime.
Herrera checks the door while Vadivia looks on.
The three teens, including the son, have been charged as adults in the crime, along with a 22-year-old man. The break-in was captured on home security video and widely broadcast by the news media and on social media soon after the crime.
Evidence now shows that Simerjeet Singh helped plan the invasion of his father’s house with criminal street gang members that he knew from high school. He was arrested on Friday, June 12 after an extensive investigation linked him to the crime.
Facing felony robbery and burglary charges along with gang enhancements are Singh, and previously arrested Moses Perez Herrera, 17, Alvaro Valdivia, 16, and Moses Noel Torres, 22.
Valdivia and Herrera went through kitchen drawers, and took utensils as potential weapons.
Central Felonies Unit, Deputy District Attorney Madeline Seiff said, “We are thankful to the San Jose Police Department for identifying these dangerous defendants and in quickly tracking them down and getting them into custody.” Seiff said, “Most of all, we are thankful the victims are all safe.”
It was discovered that around 11:00 a.m. on Friday, May 8, Herrera and Valdivia appeared at Singh’s home, likely driven there by Torres, who remained outside. Once there, the pair broke in to the house through an unlocked sliding door. Valdivia wore a hood and gloves during the break-in. After the intruders had explored the home’s first floor, they armed themselves with kitchen utensils, severing telephone landlines and stealing cell phones found in the residence.
When they went upstairs they were confronted by a female resident, who thought the noises may have been her husband. She, with another female and a baby, all took refuge in one of the rooms. The defendants ran after her, smashing through a door the victim was desperately trying to hold closed. The three victims then fled that room and were then able to lock themselves inside the main bathroom. They wasted no time to call police on a cell phone. The two suspects were unable to get into that room, and finally gave up and left the residence.
View the surveillance video on YouTube as posted by KTVU
Herrera caught in the video upstairs holding a knife.
Evidence shows that the Herrera, Valdivia, and Torres are affiliated with a Norteno criminal street gang in San Jose. Singh is suspected of planning the break-in, giving the others information about how to get in and what to look for. He was not living at the home himself at the time, and may have been unaware of the surveillance system installed.
All four suspects were arraigned in the San Jose Superior Court on Friday, June 12. Records show that Moses Torres had been arrested in September of 2013 for vandalism causing property damage, and in August 2014 on a warrant for resisting or obstructing an officer by the San Jose police. Any prior records on the other suspects would have been sealed due to their minor status.
Images all from YouTube/KTVU
Read More: MercuryNews.com : Harrowing San Jose home invasion caught on video was ‘masterminded’ by owner’s son
