The traffic stop of a fake deliveryman in a suspicious vehicle by an Irvine police officer led to a month-long investigation that culminated with the arrests of five Colombian nationals believed to be part of a transnational burglary crew, police officials announced Friday, May 16.

In at least one of the burglaries, a woman approached the front door of a home appearing to be a food delivery worker, police said, and a man later arrived wearing an Amazon vest.

The crew was responsible for a pair of residential burglaries in Irvine, one in Fontana, and burglaries of a home and storage unit in Colton, Irvine police Sgt. Adam Pettinger said.

All five crew members, four men and a woman, were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit burglary Thursday in Fontana following police surveillance, officials said, adding that hundreds of thousands of dollars of cash, jewelry, handbags and other high-end items were recovered.

The crew also stole at least three handguns during the spree, authorities said.

Police are working through recovered items to see if there were more victims, officials said.

Officers were called to a home on Cultivate near the Great Park about 1:45 p.m. on April 20 after a homeowner looking through his Ring camera saw a woman who appeared to be delivering food and, later, a man in an Amazon vest come to his front door.

Police arrived and found that the home had been ransacked, but did not locate any suspects there, police said.

The footage, provided by police Friday, shows the man in the Amazon vest putting gloves on before entering the home at 1:43 p.m., then seven minutes later, shows three people, including the man in the Amazon vest and another in a construction vest, running from the door with a backpack and suitcase before entering a white SUV across the street.

The officer, who was working a perimeter while others went to the home, noticed an unspecified vehicle code violation, and because the SUV was leaving the area where the crime had just occurred, pulled the car over. He also happened to notice the driver wasn’t wearing a seatbelt.

The driver told the officer he was delivering food to a customer, but could not provide the address, police said.

The officer searched the car and found suspicious items, and the driver was arrested for driving without a license and was taken to headquarters to confirm his identity.

Detectives learned the man, 24-year-old Jhon Osorioarias of Fontana, was involved with an organized burglary crew, police said. Detectives conducted surveillance on Osorioarias, identified several of his associates and linked the crew to at least three other burglaries outside the city.

Police connected the crew to another home burglary in Irvine on April 4. Five days prior, a woman rang the Ring doorbell and, about 4:30 a.m. on April 4, a man wearing a black jacket, mask and hat, was seen prying open the door and then leaving the home through the front door minutes later with a backpack and a box.

Officials said in most cases, at least one member of the crew would walk up to homes appearing as an Amazon or food delivery worker, knocking on doors to see if anyone was home.

“Disguising themselves as either workers or Amazon delivery drivers, wearing the vests that are consistent with both is a consistent (mode of operation) that we’ve been seeing,” Pettinger said.

Whether members of the crew were in neighborhoods casing homes before breaking into them is not known yet by officials, but is consistent with how burglary crews operate, Pettinger said.

Burglars in theft ring crews usually head for the master bedroom to find valuables and are usually in and out within minutes, Irvine police Sgt. Karie Davies said.

Police made the arrests Thursday after a month-long investigation, taking the suspects into custody at a park in Fontana, officials said.

The other four suspects are:

• Jesus Hernandezchavez, 42, of Fontana,
• John Fredy Sanabria, 42, of Fontana,
• Duber Salarte, 48, of Fontana, and
• Isneidy Ortiz Valencia, 29, of Colton.

“We know that we still need to piece together a ton of evidence,” Pettinger said. “We are confident that in the days and weeks ahead that we will connect this crew to other burglaries.”

How they selected the homes is still under investigation, Pettinger said.

The sergeant said the investigation shows “the level of sophistication that goes into these crews.”

Transnational burglary crews are not new to Southern California and police have arrested other crews in recent months.

The rings have been around for decades, but authorities noticed an uptick since 2018. In some cases, the crews will ship stolen goods back to their country, or sell them online and wire the money, officials have said.

The South American crews are known to case homes in more affluent neighborhoods, with some going as far as to hide cameras outside of homes to find out when homeowners aren’t around so they can strike, officials have said.

The crews will case homes, then enter through a front or back door or even straight into the master bedroom.

Pettinger said it’s important for residents to know the neighborhood where they live.

“(Be diligent) with who is in your neighborhood and who is coming to your door,” he said Friday. “If you didn’t order a package and someone’s coming and knocking on your door, it should raise some alarm bells and we encourage you to call the police to notify us of it.”