Six suspects have been arrested in connection with a series of Riverside County train robberies in which approximately $200,000 worth of merchandise was stolen.
The robberies targeted freight trains across multiple cities, and Riverside County sheriff’s deputies worked to track down the location where the stolen goods were being stored.
The suspects were identified as:
Renato Compean Briones, 29, from Indio Carla, Virginia Urias Herrera, 39, from Indio Jesús Iván Castillo Ruiz, 28, from Thermal Juan Pablo Ortega Hernandez, 38, from Mecca Birthplace Dite Nadine Amezquita Luna 36 years old, from Mecca Bernardo Acosta, 39 years old, from Mecca
The months-long investigation began on Aug. 2, when deputies were called to a train robbery near Hammond Road and 68th Street in unincorporated Mecca.
Several items taken from the freight train were recovered, but the suspects had already fled the scene.
In the weeks that followed, investigators worked to track down multiple locations where large quantities of stolen goods were believed to be stored.
Photos show where thousands of dollars worth of stolen sneakers and other retail merchandise were stored from a Riverside County freight train. (Riverside County Sheriff’s Office)
On Nov. 6, a search warrant was served at a residence/storage facility in the 82200 block of Santa Rosa Avenue in Indio. More than $80,000 in stolen merchandise was discovered on the premises. Two suspects, Brinoes and Herrera, were arrested at the scene.
Another search warrant was served at a home in the 88800 block of 62nd Avenue in Thermal, where more than $12,000 worth of stolen property was discovered. One of the suspects, Castillo Ruiz, was taken into custody.
On Nov. 21, search warrants were served at a property in the 65100 block of Cole Sor Juana in the unincorporated community of Mecca and a warehouse in the 53300 block of Highway 111 in Coachella. More than $76,000 worth of merchandise was recovered from the residence and warehouse. Two suspects, Hernandez and Luna, were arrested.
The next day, on November 22nd, Thermal Security Bureau officers responded to a train robbery in the Hammond Road area of Mecca. Several open train containers containing missing items and a parked vehicle were found at the scene, but no suspects were found at the scene.
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On Dec. 4, a search warrant was served at a warehouse in the 53300 block of Highway 111 in Coachella, where $26,000 worth of stolen property was discovered. On December 10th, the suspect involved, Acosta, was located and arrested.
A total of approximately $194,000 worth of stolen property was recovered. The suspect group faces a variety of charges, including robbery, possession of stolen property, violation of probation, possession of burglary tools, grand larceny, and conspiracy.
The series of thefts is still under investigation. Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to call Deputy Hernandez and Deputy Padilla at Thermal Sheriff’s Station at 760-863-8990.
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