Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office detectives are investigating whether six suspected package thieves recently arrested for Cupertino and Saratoga crimes could be behind similar incidents reported throughout the West Valley Division, including Los Altos Hills.
The holiday season has heralded a surge in missing deliveries, but six individuals arrested on separate occasions since Dec. 1 are believed responsible for at least some of the thefts, according to a press release titled “The Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office West Valley Division serves as the Grinch to package thieves.”
Arrested thus far are Marcos Cruz, 26, of Sacramento; Jordan DelCampo, 21, of San Jose; Ronald Martinez, 44, of San Jose; Amanda Matsuo, 23, of San Jose; James Maybin, 34, of Boulder Creek; and Dolores Mestaz, 43, of San Jose.
The stolen goods include women’s clothing, construction equipment, children’s books, children’s clothing and one family’s tickets for a Disney Christmas vacation, the press release stated. Maybin and an accomplice allegedly broke into a Cupertino UPS storage facility and stole a large quantity of packages before they could be delivered.
“The Sheriff’s Office was able to quickly return the packages back to UPS so that the packages could be delivered in a timely manner for the holidays,” according to the release.
Officials urge residents to exercise caution when arranging deliveries and recommend precautions like installing security cameras, shipping packages to one’s office, requiring signatures upon delivery and directing packages to shipping companies’ facilities.
To report information on package theft cases, call the Sheriff’s Office detective division at (408) 808-4500 or the anonymous tip line at (408) 808-4431. To report suspicious activity, call the sheriff’s dispatch line at (408) 299-2311.
