South American gangs armed with knives are running wild on Los Angeles highways ... trends now
South American gangs armed with knives are running wild on Los Angeles highways, targeting jewelers in terrifying daytime robberies.
The criminals brazenly slash tires, shatter windows, and even plant trackers on their victims' cars.
One jeweler, Stacy Nolan Soper, found herself in danger on October 18 as she drove home from downtown LA's jewelry district with a bag of valuable merchandise.
Soper's vehicle was suddenly ambushed by masked thieves on the ramp from the westbound 10 Freeway to the southbound 405.
'It seemed like [he] was going to attack me,' Soper told the LA Times.
As traffic slowed, a car ahead stopped abruptly, and three men, including two wearing ski masks, attacked her vehicle - slashing tires, smashing windows, with one whipping out a weapon - resembling something out of an action movie.
South American gangs armed with knives are running wild on Los Angeles highways - targeting terrified jewelers in brazen daytime robberies
One jeweler, Stacy Nolan Soper, found herself in danger on October 18 as she drove home from downtown LA's jewelry district with a bag of valuable merchandise
Soper's experience mirrors several similar incidents targeting jewelers on LA freeways as armed South American gangs brazenly carry out daytime robberies
Soper's experience mirrors several similar incidents targeting jewelers on Los Angeles freeways.
Another jeweler from Hong Kong fell victim to a robbery on the eastbound 10 just six days later.
The shocking moment the driver was driven off the road and then robbed in broad daylight as he kneeled on the road with his arms in the air was caught on camera.
Four men with ski masks, intentionally crashed into a black-colored Alfa Romeo on the eastbound I-10 west of Arlington Avenue in South Los Angeles.
'The victim vehicle was rendered disabled, as the suspects proceeded to rob the victim,' the California Highway Patrol later confirmed.
A passenger in a passing car filmed the terrifying moment the robbers surrounded the victim and began rifling through his vehicle.
Police said the suspects, who were armed with a hammer and a crowbar, then fled from the scene in a white Chevrolet Malibu.
A witness, who also filmed the incident, later told Eyewitness News 'it seems like they knew what he had in his car... I felt really bad for him, I thought it was over for him but he did the right thing'.
'The number of crimes tied to these kind of crews are way, way up,' said LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton
Organized crime and theft have become an increasing problem for the Dem-led city with officials blaming zero cash bail policies.
This escalating trend, including additional thefts in Orange County, reveal a coordinated effort by South American gangs.
Authorities, including the LAPD's Commercial Crimes Division and the California Highway Patrol, are investigating these crimes.
According to Captain Francis Boateng, the heists follow a pattern: thieves target jewelers in transit, creating scenarios to force them to stop, such as slashing tires or staging accidents.
These highway heists look like a scene out of an action film, as they exploit the freeways' potential for trapping victims and delaying authorities' response.
LAPD Deputy Chief Alan Hamilton emphasized the continued presence of such gangs, while highlighting that recent incidents reveal a surge in their activity.
'There is not one crew doing all these crimes,' he said to the LA Times. 'Basically these individuals crew up for individual jobs or series of jobs.'
The Los Angeles Police Department launched a taskforce in March in a bid to crack down on 'burglary tourists' who use the US tourism visa system to commit crimes.
Criminals from Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, and Peru target wealthy neighborhoods in places with relaxed criminal justice laws to conduct home burglaries - before returning home with the loot while out on bail.
The troubling trend of 'lanzas internacionales' - translated to 'international thieves' - dates back at least two years across America, while the problem has also reared its ugly head in the United Kingdom.
Authorities in Los Angeles announced the taskforce after a 17-year-old Chilean national was caught in Arizona following a series of jewel heists across the California city. The FBI set up its own taskforce to combat the thieves in 2022.
The suspect and his two accomplices - 32-year-old Grecia Romanduski Gaete Castillo and 23-year-old Sebastian Jesus Parraguez Soto, all from Chile - were taken into custody, where they admitted to breaking into several homes in the region.
Suspects: 32-year-old Grecia Romanduski Gaete Castillo (pictured right) and 23-year-old Sebastian Jesus Parraguez Soto (pictured left) were taken into custody
The 17-year-old was initially arrested weeks earlier in the Los Angeles area with three other Chileans for robbing homes.
