SAN ANTONIO – Two men were arrested Tuesday in connection with a “sophisticated burglary ring” valued at $1.1 million.
Julian Puente, 37, and Jerry Mendez, 41, were arrested Tuesday for a slew of burglary and theft charges believed to go back several years, Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said at a news conference.
Puente was previously arrested in August 2023. Deputies cataloged a high number of jewelry and collectibles that were collected.
Salazar said the pair is facing nine charges stemming from incidents that occurred from Dec. 30, 2022, to June 11, 2023.
At the time of Puente’s previous arrest, investigators said they knew of a second suspect but had not charged them yet.
It remains unclear if Mendez would be the final arrest by BCSO, as Salazar said more people could be involved with the ring.
“This is a pretty sophisticated ring,” Salazar said. “We don’t believe that these two acted by themselves. We believe that it’s highly possible there are other suspects involved.”
The two men worked as part of several contracting companies over the years, utilizing their work to, as Salazar described, gather intel on their potential targets.
“These suspects have been known to conduct a lot of their ... intel work, if you will, on social media,” Salazar said.
Salazar said BCSO does not believe anyone was hurt in the cases.
BCSO urges the public to contact the law enforcement agency if they have information at 210-335-6000 or email bcsotips@bexar.org.
You can listen to Sheriff Javier Salazar’s press conference in the video player below: