Chilean robbery crew used disguises, blowtorches and cellphone jammers to break into banks, ATMs

[Zorro]

A member of a sophisticated Chilean ATM robbery crew that used disguises and cellphone jammers to steal millions of dollars in heists across the West Coast pleaded guilty to federal charges Monday.

Maite Celis Silva, a 27-year-old from Chile, admitted to renting vacation properties near banks in California, Oregon and Washington as the robbery crew investigated ATMs to target, according to authorities, who said the rentals were used as staging areas for the 10-person crew, which used construction disguises, blowtorches, and cellphone jammers to break into ATMs and banks and steal cash between May and October of 2024.

Silva was involved in heists that totaled in more than $5.5 million, federal prosecutors said.

Prosecutors filed charges against the 10-person crew in October, and Silva reached a deal this month while facing 10 counts of bank robbery and one count of conspiracy to commit a bank robbery. She agreed to plead guilty to one count of each.

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2026-02-11/chilean-robbery-crew-used-disguises-to-break-into-banks-atms