5 men charged with stealing $200,000 worth of TVs in California freight train heist

5 charged in California freight train cargo theft

LOS ANGELES — Five men were indicted Friday on charges of trying to snatch nearly $200,000 worth of 3-D televisions from a freight train in a nighttime heist captured on video by investigators tailing them in the Southern California desert.

The men were arrested June 25 after unloading 45 televisions from a BNSF Railway train parked near Ludlow, a Mojave Desert town in San Bernardino County, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said.

The arrest followed a two-month investigation involving secret recordings of conversations between a confidential informant and the suspected ringleaders, Leo Meza-Cruz and Filemon Rios-Ramos.

According to the indictment, the two men used coded language to discuss their plans to scout trains leaving the Los Angeles area, identify those with valuable cargo, and follow until there was an opportunity to steal the goods. Meza-Cruz told the informant he was following a train full of televisions, and Rios-Ramos described buying a truck to haul the stolen TVs.

Three other men jumped on the train, broke into a railroad car and unloaded large boxes of the 52-inch televisions, authorities said. Grainy night-vision video showed them carrying the boxes away from the tracks and hiding them in the brush.

“Not only did this theft scheme result in significant property losses, but given the tactics often employed by rings like this, there could also be serious safety issues,” said Claude Arnold, special agent in charge for ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations in Los Angeles.

He said thieves in Arizona cut the air hoses on a BNSF train’s brakes in an attempt to stop it and steal merchandise. They were arrested and charged in that case, a BNSF spokeswoman said.

Meza-Cruz, 41; Rios-Ramos, 42; along with Hector Bernal Anaya, 25; Jesus Reyes Galvez, 38; and Eric Lopez, 41, were indicted for conspiracy, theft of interstate commerce and other charges that carry maximum 10-year sentences.

Customs officials say the men remain in federal custody pending their arraignments later this month. Calls to attorneys representing Meza-Cruz and Rios-Ramos were not immediately returned.

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Online: www.ice.gov/doclib/videos/b-rolls/100709losangeles.mov