Two men were arrested after Oxford police used traffic cameras and license plate readers to track a vehicle connected to a May 16 burglary in Oxford that yielded more than $140,000 in stolen jewelry, the Oxford Police Department said.
Officers who responded to the St. Andrews Road residence located a point of entry, footprints and a partial fingerprint, and obtained surveillance video showing multiple people entering a nearby vehicle reported as suspicious by neighbors, the department said. Investigators then used traffic cameras and license plate readers to follow the car.
Oxford police said the vehicle entered town with a different license plate and that investigators expanded the search to Alabama after contacting agencies there. The vehicle was later spotted in Arkansas, Missouri and Illinois before investigators tracked it to an area in Missouri and guided the Missouri Highway Patrol to the car. The suspects were taken into custody after a foot pursuit, the department said.
The Oxford Police Department identified the suspects as Fabian Ignactio Navarro-Aliaga, 27, and Marcelo Alejandro Telechea-Droguett, 36, both of Chile. The department said both were arrested and charged with burglary — forced entry, were issued federal charges, and had immigration detainers placed on them. Jewelry, firearms and other stolen items have been recovered and are being identified by their owners, the department said. The department thanked the Missouri Highway Patrol, the Chicago Police Department and the Department of Homeland Security for assistance and said the investigation is ongoing with more charges pending in several states. The Booneville Police Department said the case shows how license plate readers can connect information across cities and states and enhance public safety and investigations.
Jon Ross Myers is the executive editor and publisher of the Mississippi News Network, Mississippi's largest digital only media company. He can be reached at editor@tippahnews.com
