Fuel Thieves Caught in the Act
On Monday, November 29, 2021 the Mesquite Police Department concluded an extensive investigation into a fuel theft ring involving the use of stolen credit card information and a mobile credit card forgery lab.
In mid-November, the Mesquite Police Department received several reports of stolen credit cards being used at a gas station to pump large quantities of fuel. Officers recovered video surveillance of the suspects using stolen credit cards to fuel two pickup trucks on multiple occasions. On Monday November 22, an alert employee observed three males fueling the same trucks that were observed on previous occasions. The employee called police and officers quickly arrived and took three adult males into custody.
The trucks had been heavily modified with custom tanks and pumps to store large amounts of fuel. Detectives executed a search warrant on the vehicles involved and recovered several forged and modified credit cards, a credit card encoder device and other forgery lab material, and almost 500 gallons of diesel fuel that had been purchased with stolen and forged credit cards. With this additional evidence, detectives were able to conclude this investigation and proceed with multiple felony charges for each suspect.
Dayner Martin Fuentes, 41, of Las Vegas, NV, was arrested and charged with felony conspiracy to commit burglary, felony conspiracy to commit fraudulent use of a credit card with intent to defraud, felony possession of scanning device, felony forgery of a credit card with intent to defraud, and felony possession of a forgery lab.
Dayner Martin Fuentes, 41, of Las Vegas, NV
Silvio Ramos Fernandez, 41, of Las Vegas, NV, was arrested and charged with felony conspiracy to commit burglary, felony conspiracy to commit fraudulent use of a credit card with intent to defraud, felony obtain credit card without consent, felony forgery of a credit card with intent to defraud, and felony possession of a forgery lab.
Silvio Ramos Fernandez, 41, of Las Vegas, NV,
Danilo Valdes Berbes, 30, of Las Vegas, NV, was arrested and charged with felony burglary of a business, felony fraudulent use of a credit card with intent to defraud, felony obtain credit card without consent, felony forgery of a credit card with intent to defraud, and felony possession of a forgery lab.
Danilo Valdes Berbes, 30, of Las Vegas, NV
Due to the felony charges, all three suspects were transported to the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Chief MaQuade Chesley stated “Because of an observant gas station employee, three more felons are out of Mesquite and not victimizing hard-working people and businesses. This incident showcases the incredible cooperation we have with the public and the dedication and considerable effort our officers and detectives put into protecting our great city”.
Modified Truck used to obtain large amounts of fuel (photo from MPD)
Modified Truck used to obtain large amounts of fuel (photo from MPD)
great work on the part of both the Mesquite Police Dept and the observant station employee. Mesquite has the best!!!
In challenging times the scumbags among us try to find ways to beat the system, and it usually involves hurting other people. For a small town Mesquite has a great police department, they are seriously on their game!