Authorities in Bexar County have cracked down on what they say was a well-oiled car theft ring operating out of a North Side shop. Six men now face a litany of charges after a sting operation unveiled a cache of stolen vehicles and auto parts, according to the Bexar County Sheriff's Office. The arrest affidavits, as seen by KENS 5, detail the capture and charges laid against the suspects.
The investigation, which began to unravel at a shop on Basse Road, revealed the seven stolen vehicles and numerous parts inside the establishment owned by Miguel Santibanez. In the process, investigators notably observed various cars with altered VIN stickers and irregular license plates, prompting them to gradually pull together the criminal web, as KENS 5 reports. Traffic stops soon corroborated their suspicions, rapidly leading to the execution of a search warrant.
The arrest documents state that Miguel, alongside George Santibanez and Ethan Soto, were each charged with engaging in organized crime, with the charges stacking up to include unauthorized use of a vehicle and theft ranging from $30,000-$150,000 for individual suspects.
Admission to the scheme was as casual as a conversation on Instagram, where Soto confessed to being shot during one of the thefts. An accomplice responded with "Atleast u got it," indicating the degree of nonchalance towards the violent extremes of their illicit endeavors, of which conversation excerpts were furnished by KENS 5. Further scrutiny of these digital trails outlined their intent to also steal a Dodge Charger from a residential home.
As the Bexar County investigations dug deeper, they unearthed that the suspects were stripping vehicles, swapping engines, and hawking them in an underground market at slashed prices. Another suspicious Dodge Charger, now identified as having a stolen engine, was in active reassembly on the shop's premises, as reported by KSAT. Phone records contributed additional evidence, reaffirming the connections each suspect had to the shop and to each other in the organized crime ring.
The Bexar County Sheriff's Office continues their investigation.
