SAN RAMON — A suspect in the recent bombing of a Target here was also linked to a major heist crew that allegedly traveled the Pacific Coast and made millions in a series of sophisticated ATM burglaries, court records show.
Diego Ananias Arellano Diaz, aka Fabio Cristian Hernandez, was arrested in Newport Beach on July 29 in connection with the July 20 bombing. But Arellano Diaz was also the target of a much more sprawling investigation alleging him and 10 others traveled California, Oregon, and Washington committing sophisticated ATM heists, making millions, and booking Air Bnbs and rental cars for the illicit travels.
Arellano Diaz is charged alongside Alex Moyano-Morales, Maite Celis-Silva, Erik Osorio Olivarez, Pablo Valdez-Rodriguez, Rosa Bastias-Serra, Camilo Sepulveda-Guzman, Bassil Dacosta-Frias, Camilo Alarcon-Alarcon, and Michelle Parada-Munoz. The criminal complaint says that the crew comprised mostly Chilean nationals and are responsible for more than $4 million in robberies and burglaries.
Arrelano Diaz also has a pending assault case in Los Angeles. The federal case will commence once his state prosecution is finished, federal prosecutors said in a news release.
The heist crew case was filed last October, and Arellano Diaz has had an arrest warrant since at least October 2024, court records show. Still, prosecutors say he continued right along, and that this recent San Ramon bombing was yet another ATM robbery.
It fits a familiar pattern, according to federal authorities.
The thieves allegedly scouted locations in advance, then sprang into action. They would typically spray-paint security cameras, then use power tools and blowtorches to access ATMs. They would often wear disguises, like posing as a construction crew, and bring with them cellphone jammers, cases of power tools, sledgehammers, and crowbars, according to the complaint.
At least once this required going through a wall to access a bank’s cash room, authorities allege.
The target locations included banks and ATM kiosks in Modesto, Citrus Heights, Fresno, Turlock, Auburn, Rocklin, Anaheim, Fall River Mills, and Merced, among other locations. They’re also under investigation for possible involvement in a string of similar larcenies in Los Angeles and San Diego, and one that occurred last January in Houston, Texas, according to the criminal complaint.
In addition to surveillance footage, prosecutors obtained pictures of the defendants posing with allegedly stolen cash. In one photo, a clearly pregnant Silva is seen taking a picture of her live-in boyfriend, Osorio Olivarez in a residential bathroom. Prosecutors say the picture was taken in Los Angeles when the crew was actively burglarizing there.
Originally Published:
<
