MN, WI heists: Suspects charged took selfies with stolen cash, jewelry: charges

MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minn. (FOX 9) - Four men accused of multiple burglaries at high-end homes totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen jewelry from homes in Minnesota and Wisconsin last year posed for selfies with the stolen goods, according to a federal complaint filed this week in Wisconsin.

High-end burglaries

What we know:

Four men are named in a federal indictment unsealed this week in the Eastern District of Wisconsin for burglaries that occurred in Minnesota and Wisconsin between October and December of last year.

Luciano Silva Cifuentes, Enjerbet Rojas Silva, Leandro Pino Uribe, and Nobuaki Lara Watay are charged with interstate transportation of stolen property and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Cifuentes and Watay face additional counts of money laundering.

The backstory:

Federal prosecutors say the men were part of a South American theft ring that targeted multiple homes across Minnesota and Wisconsin throughout the course of four months between September 2025 and December 2025.

According to the complaint, authorities were able to link the four men to break-ins at homes in Edina, Orono, Lake Elmo, and Mendota Heights.

In Wisconsin, investigators connected the thieves to break-ins in Waukesha County,

Break-ins detailed

Dig deeper:

It appears the men would book an Airbnb and use the rentals as a base of operations as they targeted homes. However, cell phone records show between thefts the crooks would routinely travel back and forth between Florida.

In some cases, it appears the suspects would approach from wooded areas and gain entry to the homes by breaking a window or forcing their way through a patio door. When inside the homes, the thieves targeted master bedrooms and closets for jewelry and cash.

Investigators say in several of the Wisconsin break-ins, the thieves removed pillowcases from beds to use as bags to remove items from the homes.

Local perspective:

The complaint includes details about a couple of specific burglaries, including a break-in at a home on a cul-de-sac off Schaefer Road in Edina last November.

During that break-in, the thieves broke in through a glass patio door, rummaged through the home, and made off with jewelry and silver. The estimated value of the stolen items was nearly $300,000.

The homeowners were at their residence in Florida at the time.

Suspects took selfies

Big picture view:

The criminal complaint includes photos of the suspects posing for selfies with Rolex watches, piles of cash, and expensive jewelry that prosecutors say were taken from the homes.

After the Edina break-in, prosecutors said on Cifuentes' phone they found a photo of a Rolex watch on a man's wrist. The photo had been taken the night of the break-in and a homeowner later confirmed to investigators that the watch belonged to them.

Other photos on the phone showed Cifuentes posing for a selfie wearing a cross necklace and sitting at a table with watches and other jewelry in front of him. The victims confirmed all the jewelry belonged to them.

On Silva's phone, investigators said they found multiple selfies of Silva wearing several pieces of jewelry that the victims later said belonged to them.

Cifuentes phone also contained photos of the suspects posing for photos next to a massive pile of cash that investigators say was stolen from a home in Verona, Wis.

The arrest:

Three of the suspects were arrested in December after cell phone records obtained by the Waukesha County Sheriff's Office in Wisconsin connected the suspects to the burglaries in Minnesota.

Investigators were able to connect three suspects, Uribe, Silva, and Cifuentes, to a Dodge Durango, which they tracked using Flock cameras in Rockford, Illinois. The vehicle was stopped by deputies after it entered Wisconsin. All three men were charged with possession of burglary tools and immigration holds were placed on the men by Homeland Security for being in the country illegally.

Crime and Public SafetyMinnesotaWisconsin