los angeles — Federal immigration authorities allowed a suspect $100 million Jewelry theft He is believed to be the oldest in US history to extradite himself to South America in December, a move that surprised and upset prosecutors who were planning to try the case and send him to prison.
Jason Nealon’s Priscilla Flores was one of them Seven people were charged Last year they chased an armored truck into a rest stop on a rural highway north of Los Angeles and stole millions worth of diamonds, emeralds, gold, rubies and designer watches due in 2022.
Flores faced up to 15 years in federal prison if convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of interstate and foreign shipments and theft of interstate and foreign shipments. He pleaded not guilty to these charges.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement deported Flores in late December after he requested voluntary departure, prosecutors said in court filings.
ICE did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
Flores’ attorney, John D. Robertson, asked for the indictment against his client to be dismissed, requesting that the charges be dropped permanently and that the case be closed.
Federal prosecutors oppose the motion and say they still hope Flores will stand trial, and are asking that the charges be dropped “without prejudice” to keep the door open for future criminal prosecution.
Although Flores is a lawful permanent resident and released on bail, he was transferred to ICE custody in September, according to court filings filed by his defense attorney. Federal prosecutors say they were not aware Flores had an immigration detainer.
Robertson said in his motion that this was a violation of his rights to criminal prosecution and warranted dismissal of his case.
Flores chose deportation to Chile during an immigration hearing on December 16, according to court documents. The judge denied his request for voluntary departure, but issued a final deportation order, and he was sent to Ecuador.
“Prosecutors are supposed to allow the civil immigration process to operate independently while criminal charges are pending,” federal prosecutors wrote in their motion opposing dismissal of the case. “That is exactly what they did in this case – inadvertently to the defendant’s advantage because he will now avoid trial and any possible conviction or sentencing, unless he returns to the United States.”
Former federal prosecutor Lori Levinson said what happened to Flores is highly unusual, especially in a case of this importance.
Typically, if a criminal defendant has immigration proceedings against them — which is common — immigration officials inform prosecutors of what is happening. In minor cases, a defendant can sometimes choose to self-deport rather than prosecute.
“I can’t imagine how he could be deported without prosecutors being in the conversation,” Levinson said. “This was really the left hand not knowing what the right hand was doing.”
The jewelers who were robbed are also demanding answers.
“When the defendant in a federal grand theft case leaves the country before trial, victims are left without answers, without judgment, and without closure,” Jerry Kroll, an attorney for some of the jewelry companies, told the Los Angeles Times.
The infamous jewelry theft unfolded in July 2022 after the suspects discovered Brink’s tractor trailer leaving an international jewelry show near San Francisco with dozens of bags of jewelry, according to the indictment. While victims reported losses of more than $100 million, Brink said the value of the stolen items was less than $10 million.
A lawsuit Brink’s Security Company filed a report stating that one of the drivers was sleeping inside the big platform and the other was getting food inside the rest stop when the thieves broke into the place.
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Schoenbaum reported from Park City, Utah.