Santa Rosa: Alleged "Prolific" Burglar And Identity Thief Arrested In Windsor After Weeks-Long Investigation

Bay City News

Santa Rosa police arrested a man Thursday they accuse of being a prolific thief and habitual felon after one of his alleged victims helped track him down online.

Refujio Cuco Carrillo, 47, was arrested on suspicion of multiple charges, including burglary, possession of stolen property, committing a felony while out on bail and several counts related to alleged identity theft, police said.

The trail to his arrest began when a man whose Santa Rosa business was robbed of tools and musical equipment in April tracked down some of the items being sold online.

Santa Rosa police investigators obtained search warrants to unearth details of the online account used to sell the items, which eventually led them to Carrillo, who was out on bail from a June arrest by the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office for alleged grand theft, possession of stolen property and possession of drugs for sale, according to police officials.

When officers raided Carrillo's Windsor home on the 1000 block of Polaris Drive, they allegedly found stolen mail, identification cards and debit cards belonging to identity theft victims, among other items, Police said.

While officers didn't find the tools or equipment that were stolen from the Santa Rosa business, police said they did find digital evidence that allegedly links Carrillo to the theft, and some of those items turned up at a local pawn shop and are being returned to their rightful owner.

Investigators also talked with several victims of the alleged mail and identity theft and, along with help from surveillance video from an in-person retail transaction, were able to identify Carrillo as a suspect in those cases, as well, according to police.

In addition to Carrillo, police arrested Beatriz Vital Lomeli, 31, during Thursday's search of the Windsor home.

Lomeli, who has previous convictions for identity theft, was arrested on suspicion of possession of personal identifying information, police said.

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