Waukesha County prosecutors say three men from Chile, who were in the country illegally, traveled from Florida to Wisconsin multiple times and burglarized suburban homes in a similar pattern.
The criminal complaint, filed Dec. 12, offers concrete details into the string of burglaries that the Mequon Police Department first warned residents about in mid-November. Prosecutors say the three men broke into a Delafield home in October and the burglary methods used there matched those of others in the surrounding area, including three in Mequon and Ozaukee County.
Enjerbet A. Rojas Silva, 19; Leandro F. Pino Uribe, 20; and Luciano A. Silva Cifuentes, 26, are all charged with burglary and possession of burglarious tools as a party to a crime.
The three men are charged only for the burglary in Delafield and for possession of burglary tools in Mukwonago. Prosecutors say the men stole about 100 pieces of jewelry from the Delafield home.
Authorities used a combination of cellphone records and Flock camera footage to trace the men’s travel between Florida, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Flock cameras scan and identify license plates for police.
Authorities say the records showed the men in Wisconsin and Minnesota at the time of various burglaries.
On Dec. 10, authorities tracked the suspect’s phones to Florida, Illinois and Wisconsin, according to the criminal complaint. Waukesha County deputies stopped the three men and found devices meant to jam internet signals of security equipment and tools to break into windows, according to the criminal complaint.
Court records show the men had prior addresses in Kissimmee, Florida.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations division verified the three men are undocumented, according to the criminal complaint. The three men were booked into Waukesha County Jail on immigration holds, according to the complaint.
The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of the three men and whether they were still in the country.
The three men may also be connected to an attempted burglary in Ledgeview and, possibly, another burglary, said Brown County Sheriff’s Office Captain David Poteat. The office is investigating the attempted burglary as more likely to be connected, but it’s still considered an open investigation, he said.
All three of the men are scheduled to appear in court Dec. 17 for the Waukesha County charges. Bond was set for Uribe and Cifuentes at $250,000, according to online court records. Records show bond has not yet been set for Silva.
Few details were available at first, ignited firestorm among conservatives
A month ago, the Mequon Police Department warned residents that a dozen burglaries appeared connected to a “South American crime ring,” though details were hard to come by.
At the time, Mequon Police Capt. John Hoell said similar burglaries happened in Florida, where law enforcement found ties to South America.
The pattern was the same each time – large homes with wooded backyards, entering through the back of the residence and taking high-end jewelry, handbags and currency – and the charges against the three references that pattern as well.
The ongoing investigation brought national attention to Wisconsin, driven in part by both Republican candidates for Wisconsin governor. “Wisconsin Democrats protect these criminals with sanctuary jurisdictions. I will put your safety FIRST,” Congressman Tom Tiffany wrote on social media Dec. 13.
Last month, Hoell could not specify which country the men were from and cautioned against assuming they were in the country legally or illegally.
Seven men accused of forming a Chilean South American theft group faced charges earlier this year for robbing Milwaukee Bucks forward Bobby Portis Jr. and other professional athletes. Charges were filed in a federal court in Tampa, Florida.
The criminal complaint against Silva, Uribe and Cifuentes does not make direct mention of that group. Members of the Mequon Police Department, Ozaukee County Sheriff’s Office and Waukesha County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding possible connection to those burglaries.
Hope Karnopp can be reached at HKarnopp@gannett.com.
David Clarey is a public safety reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He can be reached at dclarey@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Three men from Chile accused in string of burglaries across Wisconsin
Reporting by Hope Karnopp and David Clarey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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