7 accused in $5 million ‘crime tourism’ theft ring based out of Van Nuys

A Santa Clarita Valley man accused of running a crew of “crime tourism” thieves from South America tied to burglaries and thefts across the country that led to more than $5 million in illicit proceeds was among seven people taken into custody early Wednesday, August 28, to face a 46-count federal indictment, law enforcement leaders announced.

A grand jury indictment that was unsealed alleges that Juan Carlos Thola-Duran and six other co-defendants committed a multitude of federal crimes, including wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy and structuring transactions to avoid federal financial reporting requirements.

Crime tourism theft groups, according to law enforcement officials in a statement, are comprised of individuals from outside the country, often from South America, who enter the United States and “engage in burglaries, thefts and other crimes.”

The fruits of the thefts are shared with “facilitators and co-conspirators” that assist them, prosecutors said. Thola-Duran and his co-defendants are accused of having been among such facilitators, with federal prosecutors describing them as acting as “quarterbacks for a team of thieves.”

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The indictment alleges that Thola-Duran, a 57-year-old resident of the Canyon Country in the Santa Clarita Valley, and his live-in girlfriend, 41-year-old Ana Maria Arriagada, operated Driver Power Rentals, a Van Nuys-based automotive business.

From at least January 2018 to July 2024, the indictment alleges, Thola-Duran directed members of crime tourism groups to travel to various parts of the United States to commit thefts. That included, prosecutors say, shoplifting, residential and commercial burglaries and credit-card thefts.

Thola-Duran and Arriagada provided the thieves with vehicles from Driver Power Rentals, prosecutors allege, and arranged for them to deliver stolen goods to associates at the company. Thola-Duran also acted as a fence, prosecutors allege, willing to buy the illicitly obtained goods at a fraction of their retail value.

Thola-Duran then sold the stolen goods to other buyers, prosecutors allege, for approximately $5.5 million over the course of the conspiracy. Thola-Duran and his co-defendants used the money to buy real estate and horses, among other assets, according to the indictment.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.