Federal prosecutors have charged seven men from the Los Angeles area with stealing about $100 million in jewelry from a Brink’s armored truck in what officials are calling the largest jewelry heist in U.S. history.
According to a Tuesday news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California, the defendants are Carlos Victor Mestanza Cercado, Jazael Padilla Resto, Pablo Raul Lugo Larroig, Victor Hugo Valencia Solorzano, Jorge Enrique Alban, Jeson Nelon Presilla Flores, and Eduardo Macias Ibarra. They are between 31 and 60 years old and from areas in Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties.
Flores and Larroig were arrested and pleaded not guilty in court on Tuesday. Padilla is in prison in Arizona for a separate burglary case. The other four men are still at large.
The theft occurred on July 11, 2022, when the suspects broke into a Brink’s semitruck at a truck stop in Lebec, California, stealing 24 bags filled with gold, diamonds, emeralds, rubies, and luxury watches.
The truck had been transporting items from a jewelry show in San Mateo, south of San Francisco, to Pasadena.
Prosecutors said the heist was carefully planned. According to them, Resto reportedly scouted the jewelry show on July 8. Two days later, the group followed the truck for nearly 300 miles, from San Mateo to Buttonwillow, and finally to Lebec, before carrying out the theft.
After stealing the bags, the suspects went back to East Hollywood. Most turned off the phones they used for planning.
According to authorities, some of the stolen items were recovered during searches conducted in June 2025. They also seized cash, but much of the jewelry remains missing.
A federal grand jury indicted the suspects last week on two counts each of conspiracy to commit theft and theft from interstate and foreign shipment, with five of the men facing additional robbery-related charges.
Prosecutors said several of the suspects were also involved in other thefts earlier in 2022. These included stealing more than $240,000 in Samsung products and nearly $60,000 worth of Apple AirTags from other cargo shipments.
The FBI led the investigation with help from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and local police.
