Peaceful Town Is Caught Up in Web of Distraction Thefts Tied to International Crime Rings

Clear Facts

• The peaceful town of St. George in Utah has become the latest target of “distraction thefts” conducted by transient criminals linked with Romanian and South American crime rings.
• The operation involves working in pairs or trios, diverting individuals in stores and pilfering from their wallets or bags.
• The perpetrators, Colombian nationals, were apprehended following a series of such crimes due to a multi-agency investigation headed by a St. George detective.

St. George, a calm town in Utah, has recently fallen victim to a worrying wave of “distraction thefts.” These crimes are carried out by mobile criminals linked with Romanian and South American crime rings. They traverse states to commit theft and promptly move on to another state to evade local law enforcement.

Over the last year, St. George has seen 37 instances of these clever thefts, conducted in grocery stores, retail outlets, and restaurants. According to Sgt. Zack Bahlmann of the St. George Police Department, this unique crime pattern first emerged about three years ago.

Bahlmann explains,
“Primarily, we see these suspects working in groups of two or three entering businesses. One person will engage – they’ll identify a target, typically someone with a purse or a wallet that’s in a shopping cart or within easy reach. One person will distract the target, perhaps ask a question about a product to draw their attention away from the cart. Then another person will pilfer from the cart.”

In a notable breakthrough earlier this month, following an extensive investigation involving state and federal agencies, three Colombian nationals were arrested. This trio, including Jairo Gavida-Monroy, 37, and Andres Fabian Villanueva-Rodriguez, 32, had been conducting a series of such distraction thefts.

On May 18, the two men, dressed in bucket hats, skillfully stole a woman’s purse from her shopping cart at a home improvement store. The surveillance footage reviewed by detectives verified the theft. The victim’s bank cards were used soon after, to make a $1,138 purchase at a retail store within the same shopping complex. Police noted that one man had altered his appearance and seemed to be donning a wig when seen on the store’s surveillance footage.

The stolen cards were then used to acquire $1,050 worth of merchandise from a nearby pharmacy. About an hour later, the duo stole a second victim’s wallet at a grocery store on the same street. The victims’ cards were used at a major retail store, with the first victim’s bank cards charged $3,200 that day, and the second victim had six transactions totaling $6,250 on her cards.

Bahlmann stated, “Each time the cards were used, per the affidavit, one man would make the purchases while the other would ‘hover’ around the stores ‘acting as a lookout.'”

The thieves were finally caught in Wisconsin after the St. George Police Department circulated a bulletin to Homeland Security and other agencies.

Former U.S. representative from Utah, Jason Chaffetz, commented on the issue, “I think they’re banking on the idea that they can exploit the naivety of a population that isn’t used to encountering these things.”

Bahlmann emphasized the importance of harsh penalties, stating, “If we could impose some jail sentences on them where they’re serving several months or years, that seems to be a deterrent to them.” He also disclosed plans for the St. George Police Department to establish a task force specifically aimed at combatting interstate crime rings.

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