A criminal network in South America was dismantled, and robberies were committed throughout California

FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — The FBI claims to have dismantled a South American criminal network that had been committing robberies worth over a million dollars for months.

Some of the locations the crew is accused of are in the Central Valley.

Federal court documents released last week show the ring targeted banks and ATMs in California, Oregon, Washington and Texas.

The 78-page affidavit describes how investigators put it all together, along with photos showing how investigators believe they committed the crimes.

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A group referred to as the “South American Theft Crew”, with members from Chile, Venezuela and Peru, is said to have used a combination of underground car rentals, AirBNB, power tools and dark spray paint.

The statement identified members as Alex Moyano, Maite Celis, Erik Osorio, Pablo Valdez, Rosa Bastias, Camilo Sepulveda, Bassil Dacosta, Camilo Alarcon and Michelle Parada.

The FBI says it only learned about SATC in June, when a crew tried to break into an ATM in Merced.

But he later found a pattern linking it to other cases:

• Forced entry.
• Use of Covid style masks and construction vests.
• And the use of equipment, including signal jammers and blowtorches.

He says break-ins and attempts in the Fresno area linked to SATC include:

• May 5 – Wells Fargo ATM in northwest Fresno where more than $80,000 was stolen.
• June 21 – EECU ATM kiosk in Clovis. Clovis police say between $150,000 and $200,000 was stolen from each of two machines at the location.
• July 10 – An ATM was attacked in northwest Fresno. When security arrived, the crew abandoned their crowbars and blowtorches.
• September 15 – Valley First Credit Union in North Fresno. The FBI says the crew members were caught on camera the day before. Although they were unable to gain access to that machine, the crew moved on to the Fresno State campus, where EECU estimates they stole at least $20,000.

The affidavit says the woman, identified as Maite Celis, rented Air BNBs in Bakersfield, Tulare, Turlock and near the California-Oregon border.

Some homes were equipped with security cameras that later showed crews lugging large containers and bags – which the FBI said matched those used in the robberies.

The FBI added that the crew used the services of a club promoter from Southern California who rented SUVs – one of which turned out to be stolen.

However, it had an Apple Air Tag that helped the crew locate crime scenes.

Often, crew members would split up, some distracting workers and others covering the area where cameras would later spray paint black to avoid detection.

The informant told investigators that the ringleader was Alex Moyano Morales, who had several aliases, including “Gordito.”

He has so far evaded capture – there is already a warrant out for his arrest in Glendale.

However, they say he did not shy away from the remark and posted a photo on his social media with stacks of money.