CORAL GABLES, FLA. (WSVN) - It started with two arrests, but a break-in at the Coral Gables home of a couple killed in a helicopter crash in Africa is the tip of the iceberg in a vast criminal operation, police said.
Earlier this week, authorities announced the arrests of 40-year-old Geybert Garcia and 24-year-old Melany Perdomo in connection with the burglary of the residence of Adam Hlavaty and Henry Parra, but on Friday, investigators said more arrests are coming.
Investigators said they believe they have uncovered a criminal enterprise. Among the law enforcement agencies on hand at Friday’s multi-agency news conference were Coral Gables Police, the U.S. Secret Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
“We walked into ground zero of identity theft,” said Coral Gables Police Chief Edward Hudak.
Authorities said Garcia and Perdomo stole more than $500,000 worth of property, including a Range Rover and a Porsche, between Aug. 20 and Aug. 22.
Detectives said the duo targeted the married couple the day they were killed in last week’s helicopter crash in northern Kenya, which killed all seven people on board.
“These people, we believe right now, were targeted the day they were killed in that crash, which I find reprehensible,” said Hudak.
Investigators said the accused thieves spent two days ransacking the victims’ home for two days ransacking it.
Garcia and Perdomo were arrested Tuesday while detectives were executing a search warrant at a Northwest Miami-Dade home where they found the victims’ stolen property.
Detectives then returned with another warrant on Wednesday, and that’s when, police said, they found evidence and materials used for identity theft, including fake passports, driver’s licenses, and boxes of documents that could belong to potential victims.
“We have basically kicked a beehive of a criminal enterprise. Now, when I say there are mounds of evidence, including firearms, including computers, including DVRs, there is going to be a lot of work that’s going to go forward,” said Coral Gables Police Chief Edward Hudak.
Police said they also found at least a dozen firearms, and Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office detectives recovered five stolen vehicles from the property in Northwest Miami-Dade. Garcia is facing additional charges in connection with these finds. He and Perdomo remain behind bars.
Investigators believe they are only scratching the surface, so the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office is dedicating an entire team to work with them on this case.
“This is a case that has many tentacles, and it’s really shocking and unfathomable to think that something like this would happen while families are mourning and grieving,” said Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez-Rundle.
Another piece of this case that police are investigating is a document presented in court on Wednesday by Garcia’s attorney that claims it permitted Garcia to be inside Parra and Hlavaty’s home, something that the victims’ friends and family said is fake.
Authorities said their ongoing investigation is very much in its early stages, as detectives attempt to determine how many victims have been targeted and expect more arrests to be made.
“We’re going to be working very long hours to find out exactly how many people’s lives they have impersonated for their own benefit,” said Hudak.
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