Police have arrested a 25-year-old man from Gardena who they accuse of stealing over $40,000 worth of new computers from customers of the Palm Desert Apple store on El Paseo.
Mariio Otalora, a Gardena resident, was arrested for 13 counts of burglary, conspiracy and a violation of probation – according to a The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department. He was booked into the Riverside County Jail after a 5 month investigation by The Palm Desert Station Burglary Suppression Unit.
Authorities say that Otalora would follow victims out of the Apple store – who had just purchased new computers. The customer would drive away, with Otalora tailing, and when they parked elsewhere (like another store), he would break in and steal the new computer from their car – causing $5,000 worth of vehicle damage in the crimes.
Otalora was arrested on Wednesday at 2:50 p.m. near El Paseo. Cops say that inside of his 2014 white Nissan Altima with tinted windows and dealer paper plates was a stolen Apple computer taken from a vehicle burglary that occurred an hour earlier in the city of La Quinta.
Police believe another suspect is still at large. He is described as a Hispanic male adult, 20-25 years-old, 5 feet 8 inches tall, 170 pounds, with minimal facial hair.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the Palm Desert Sheriff’s Station at (760) 836-1688, or they can call in anonymously at (760) 341-STOP (7867)
