Homeland Security Task Force investigation leads to indictment of four illegal aliens from South America in million-dollar multistate burglary ring

Date: May 12, 2026

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Brad D. Schimel, First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, announced that on May 12, 2026, a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Wisconsin returned an indictment charging Chilean nationals Luciano Alexis Silva Cifuentes, Enjerbet Alejandro Rojas Silva, and Leandro Felipe Pino Uribe, and Venezuelan national Nobuaki Jesus Lara Watay with violations of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 371 (conspiracy to violate the laws of the United States), 2314 (interstate and foreign transportation of stolen property), and 1956(h) (conspiracy to launder criminal proceeds).

According to publicly filed criminal complaints that preceded today's indictment, this case arises out of an investigation initially commenced by the Waukesha County Sheriff's Office and joined by the Milwaukee area Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF). The HSTF is led by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The investigation led to charges against a group of Chilean nationals who are in the U.S. illegally and allegedly traveled from South America to commit burglaries across the United States. This South American theft group is allegedly tied to more than a dozen completed and attempted residential burglaries in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Florida, with a total loss of approximately $1,000,000 worth of U.S. currency, jewelry, firearms, precious metals, and rare coins. The Chilean burglars are alleged to have repeatedly traveled from Florida to Wisconsin and Minnesota by rental car, with the support of Watay, who is living in the U.S. illegally in Florida, and who reserved Airbnb rentals for the burglary crew, posted their bail when needed, and conducted financial transactions on the group's behalf.

The crimes with which the defendants have been charged carry maximum penalties of up to five years in prison for conspiring to violate the laws of the United States, up to ten years in prison for transporting stolen property across state or foreign boundaries, and up to twenty years in prison for conspiring to launder criminal proceeds.

This indictment is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.

This investigation was led by the Milwaukee Homeland Security Task Force 414, composed of members from the FBI, HSI, IRS-CI, U.S. Marshals Service, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Ozaukee County Sheriff's Office, with significant support from the Waukesha County Sheriff's Office, Mequon Police Department, Dane County Sheriff's Department, Brown County Sheriff's Department, Mendota Heights (MN) Police Department, Orono (MN) Police Department, Edina (MN) Police Department, Plantation (FL) Police Department, and the North Central High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA).

The prosecution is being led by the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 18 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.