Photo: Tucson Police Department
Three fast food workers in Arizona were arrested for allegedly running an extensive fencing operation out of a fast food restaurant they worked at.
Authorities said that 45-year-old Francis Sophia Vasquez, 52-year-old Lydia Grijalva-Velasquez, and 61-year-old Fabian Rodriguez Rios would buy stolen items from shoplifters and then resell the items from their homes and online.
The Tucson Police Department said the investigation started last December after officers learned about a "potential trafficking-in-stolen-property activity that involved employees of a chicken storefront."
Detectives began surveilling the employees at their homes and at Pollo Feliz, the restaurant where they worked.
"Investigators noted activity consistent with a fencing operation in which staff members of the restaurant were paying known shoplifters for items that were stolen from businesses in the area," the Tucson Police Department said.
They identified two locations where the stolen items were being stored and raided them on Wednesday (December 6). Officers recovered thousands of dollars of stolen goods, which included items such as tools, clothing, diapers, and electronics.
All three were booked into Pima County Jail on charges of trafficking in stolen property.