In August, we told you about the arrest of Ivan Lopez-Banuelos and Alese Silva for an alleged kidnapping that netted $80.
Now, Denver District Attorney's Office spokeswoman Lynn Kimbrough tells us these charges are being dropped. But if that sounds like good news, it's not.
The previous accusations against Silva and Lopez-Banuelos (known as Ivan Lopez on his Facebook page) have been rolled into a massive, 142-count grand jury indictment identifying the pair and six others as being part of what the DA's office describes as a "meth-fueled crime group" that stole cars, electronic items and money from victims all over the metro-Denver area.
The kidnapping bust didn't lead to the discovery of the other crimes. According to Kimbrough, the larger case was introduced to the grand jury in June, months before the August 7 incident. Indeed, the description of what went down on that date is the last item in the 96-page indictment, included below in its entirety.
At around 1:30 a.m. on the 7th, as we've reported, two individuals located near the 700 block of South Tejon flagged down some Denver police officers to report that they had been the victims of a robbery and carjacking.
They said they'd met Silva at a club — the indictment IDs it as Tracks — and agreed to give her a ride.
She asked to be dropped off in an alley on the 500 block of South Elliot near Federal
At that point, a man later identified as Lopez-Banuelos jumped out and pointed a gun at the head of one victim, a male.
Lopez-Banuelos allegedly climbed into the vehicle and ordered the man to drive to a store on the 800 block of Federal, where he was told to withdraw some money or face the violent consequences.
The man did so, coming away with $80.
From there, Lopez-Banuelos is said to have ordered the two victims to leave the car, an Audi, near the spot where they spotted the police officers and drove away.
A short time later, the Audi was eyeballed in the drive-through lane at Taqueria Los Gallitos, located at 2630 West Alameda.
When Lopez-Banuelos realized the police were on his tail, he backed up, ramming the vehicle in line behind him.
But this tactic didn't result in a vehicular escape; the car was immobilized. Silva was busted immediately after exiting it, while Lopez-Banuelos was rounded up after a brief foot chase.
This tale is included with many others in the indictment, which also names Jesus Luna-Rodriguez, Lucio Sierra-Camarena, Luz Lomeli-Lucio, Jose Alcala-Vargas, Herman Cervantes and Connie Martinez.
Take the narrative the fleshes out Count 131; it begins on page 83 and focuses on Luna-Rodriguez and Sierra-Camarena.
In March, the pair are said to have broken into a 2005 Bentley Coupe in Lakewood, causing $2,000 worth of damage. Inside, they found the keys to a 2010 Ford F150 truck, which they allegedly stole.
Days later, the truck was spotted near Belmar and Luna-Rodriguez and Sierra-Camarena were taken into custody following a pursuit that included a Denver Police Department helicopter.
Shortly thereafter, authorities found a stolen Honda at Luna-Rodriguez's house, as well as a storage locker owned by both men that contained the driver's license of a woman from Illinois, among other items — and these discoveries led to several other stolen cars, including a 1998 Subaru, a 2014 Audi, a 2001 Mazda MPV, a 1998 Mercedes Benz and more.
In all, the indictment lists nearly 100 victims, locations that include Denver, Lakewood, Aurora, Englewood and Littleton, as well as Adams, Arapahoe, Douglas and Jefferson counties and items with an estimated value in excess of $600,000.
Oh yeah: More than 500 grams of meth was allegedly seized from Lomeli-Lucio's home.
Look below to see booking photos for Lopez-Banuelos, Silva, Luna-Rodriguez, Sierra-Camarena and Lomeli-Lucio, followed by the indictment.
Ivan Lopez Banuelos, et. al., Indictment
