Source: US FBI
ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Two Salvadoran nationals pled guilty to conspiracy to engage in interstate transportation and sale of stolen goods.
According to court documents, beginning in September 2024, Erick Alfaro Guevara, 46, and Jose Wilmer Ortiz Granados, 23, stole catalytic converters from cars in Virginia and sold them in Maryland. Alfaro Guevara and Ortiz Granados used their cellphones to communicate about stealing catalytic converters, which they typically did at night or in the early morning, and used saws to remove the catalytic converters from parked vehicles.
On Dec. 18, 2024, Alfaro Guevara and Ortiz Granados traveled from Maryland to Arlington County where they burglarized multiple vehicles and stole catalytic converters. Later, law enforcement in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, responded to the scene of a single-car accident involving the vehicle Alfaro Guevara and Ortiz Granados had used. Alfaro Guevara and Ortiz Granados were gone by the time officers arrived at the scene. Investigators recovered 17 stolen catalytic converters as well as Alfaro Guevara’s cellphone.
Ortiz Granados pled guilty on July 1 and is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 30. Alfaro Guevara pled guilty yesterday and is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 28. They face up to five years in prison. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Reid Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Criminal Division, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema accepted the plea.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine E. Rumbaugh and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Rebecca C. Fisher are prosecuting the case.
A copy of this press release is located on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information are located on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case Nos. 1:25-cr-160 (Otiz Granados) and 1:25-cr-224 (Alfaro Guevara).