One of three men accused of stealing nearly $74,000 worth of gold jewelry from a Seal Beach Kohl’s department store was behind bars Saturday, Sept. 16, after he was caught attempting to rob another Kohl’s location in Chino, authorities said.
Brandon Libardo Bustos-Bermudez, 30, of Riverside was arrested by Seal Beach police at the Chino Kohl’s store, 4093 Grand Ave., after a Kohl’s loss-prevention officer recognized him as one of the men caught on surveillance video at the Seal Beach location and he was initially detained by Chino police, Seal Beach Police Lt. Julia Clasby said.
Bustos-Bermudez and two other men worked together to steal the jewelry from the Seal Beach location, 12345 Seal Beach Blvd., on Aug. 31, Clasby said. Surveillance cameras captured the burglary and showed the suspects fleeing in a gray BMW sedan.
Kohl’s staff put out an internal memo to all department stores in the region to be on the lookout for the suspects, Clasby said. That internal memo led to the identification of Bustos-Bermudez by a loss prevention officer, who detained him and several others as they attempted to burglarize the Chino store Friday.
Chino Police Department officers responded to the store about 4:30 p.m., Clasby said.
Bustos-Bermudez was taken to the Seal Beach Police Department, where he admitted during an interview to being involved in the Seal Beach burglary, Clasby said. He was booked into jail on suspicion of burglary, grand theft and conspiracy to commit a crime.
“Retail theft not only harms businesses but also impacts the prices consumers pay for goods,” Seal Beach Police Chief Michael Henderson said. “Perpetrators of retail theft will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Henderson credited Kohl’s loss prevention officers for detaining and identifying the suspect.
The other two suspects in the Seal Beach theft were still being sought. Anyone with information was asked to call 562-799-4100, ext. 1172 or email jgibson@sealbeachca.gov
