10 People charged with looting Modesto area stores
Modesto CA April 11 2020
Since the coronavirus pandemic reached Stanislaus County, the District Attorney’s Office has charged 10 people with looting, a theft-related crime that can be charged during emergencies.
“Birgit Fladager announced today that anyone who commits a crime of Burglary in the Second Degree, Grand Theft or Petty Theft, in our county, during the State of Emergency could be charged with Looting in violation of Penal Code 463,” the office said in a press release.
Fifteen counts of looting have been charged among the 10 defendants: Twelve of the counts are felonies against seven defendants in six separate cases and the remaining three counts are misdemeanor looting charges against three defendants in two separate cases.
The arrests were made by police in Modesto, Turlock and Waterford.
The Modesto Police Department arrested two more looting suspects in the past week and are looking for a third.
A man and a woman on Saturday filled a shopping cart with $400 worth of groceries at the Save Mart on Oakdale Road and left the store without paying, said Modesto Police Department spokeswoman Sharon Bear.
As they were loading the groceries into their vehicle a Save Mart employee confronted them and a ‘scuffle’ ensued between the employee and the male suspect, Bear said.
Investigators identified the suspects as Patricia Flores, 32, of Salida, and Nicolas Cardenas, 24, of Modesto.
On Tuesday officers located and arrested Flores but Cardenas remains at large. They both face charges of robbery, looting and conspiracy.
In a separate incident on Tuesday, officers arrested Johnathon Sutherland, 29, of Waterford, on suspicion of stealing Advil and aspirin from the Walmart on Coffee Road.
Officers arrived on scene and found Sutherland in the parking lot. He was booked on charges including looting and shoplifting.
In an open letter on its Facebook page last month, addressed to “criminal opportunists,” the Police Department noted looting:
“We have identified additional laws and have worked with the District Attorney to ensure these laws are enforced justly and equally during this state of emergency. This includes the act of looting, which is covered under 463 PC, which states in part any person who commits a theft related offense including but not limited to burglary, grand theft, and auto theft during a ‘state of emergency’ or ‘local emergency’ is guilty of an additional charge on top of the original crime committed.
“Not only will you be charged with an additional crime, it is very likely we will post your photo to all of our social media platforms (which has a reach of not only over 130,000 of our community members but the local and state media as well) for all to see so they know exactly the type of person you are.”
A week later officers arrested two men who tried to break into a Wells Fargo ATM at the Century Center shopping center at East Orangeburg Avenue and Oakdale Road. They broke into surrounding businesses to access the machines, according to police.
Both men have been charged with looting and are scheduled for a preliminary hearing May 6.
A statewide emergency bail order was implemented on Monday by the California Judicial Council, which required bail to be set at zero dollars for a multitude of offenses, except for specified crimes. Looting is among those specified crimes, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
If a defendant is charged with looting he or she will have to go before the court to address his or her custody status and will not be automatically released on zero amount bail.
Sutherland is being held on a bail of $115,000 and Flores on $110,000.
A person convicted of looting must serve a mandatory minimum sentence of 3 to 6 months in jail and the court could impose an additional 80 to 240 hours of community service.
Anyone with information about Cardenas’ whereabouts is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 209-521-4636.
modbee.com
