A Santa Clarita Valley man and his girlfriend are facing federal charges after they “facilitated a crime tourism group of South Americans and other individuals who engaged in burglaries, thefts, and other crimes throughout the United States, then laundered millions of dollars in illicit proceeds,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Juan Carlos Thola-Duran, 57, and his live-in girlfriend Ana Maria Arriagada, 41, used their Van Nuys car rental business, Driver Power Rentals, to assist crime tourism groups for a period of more than six years, from January 2018 to June 2024, the DOJ said in a news release.
“Crime tourism theft groups are comprised of individuals, often originating from outside of the United States, including from South America and elsewhere, who engage in burglaries, thefts, and other crimes throughout the U.S.,” prosecutors explained.
Thola-Duran and Arriagada were referred to by the nicknames “Parcero” and “Parcera,” respectively, with literally translate to “partner,” though in Colombian slang, its connotation denotes something more akin to “dude,” “bro” or “mate.”
The federal indictment lists four others who allegedly collaborated with “Parcero” and “Parcera”:
- Miguel Angel Barajas, 57, of Northridge
- John Carlo Thola, 33, of Canoga Park
- Patricia Enderton, who also uses the name “Patty”
- Federico Jorge Triebel IV
The six defendants face 46 criminal counts, including felonies like wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy.
Prosecutors allege they collectively made more than $5 million, and they also sought about $275,000 through fraudulent COVID-19 business relief loans.
DOJ officials say Thola-Duran and Arriagada used their business to provide rental cars to those doing the stealing, though the vehicles were rented under false identities.
Once the stolen goods and merchandise obtained by using stolen credit and debit cards were secured, Thola-Duran utilized Barajas and Thola to mail or otherwise deliver packages of items that would be sold for a total of about $5.5 million, prosecutors said.
“The defendants allegedly used their ill-gotten gains to purchase and maintain assets, including real estate and horses, and structured cash withdrawals to avoid triggering the requirement that banks report transactions exceeding $10,000 to the U.S. Treasury Department,” prosecutors said.
Officials from federal agencies; Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties; and local jurisdictions praised their collaborative efforts and the impact this prosecution will have on the spate of burglaries that have occurred over the past few years.
“These criminals were running a burglary operation with a sophistication that rivals Amazon and instead of dispatching delivery drivers, they were dispatching trained thieves throughout Southern California to steal from what should be where we are safest – our homes,” O.C. District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in the release.
If convicted, the seven defendants could be sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for each wire fraud and money laundering count, up to 10 years on what prosecutors described as “each structuring count” and five years for criminal conspiracy.