Hundreds
of stolen items said to be worth millions of dollars were found when
investigators searched properties linked to Benjamin Ackerman, 32.
Mr
Ackerman is alleged to have posed as a buyer to survey the homes before the
burglaries, which began in 2017.
Among
the victims are the musicians Usher and Adam Lambert, police said.
Thirteen
victims have so far been identified.
Announcing
the arrest on Wednesday, Los Angeles Police Detective Jared Timmons said
"high value" property was recovered by investigators from Mr
Ackerman's home and a separate storage unit.
Images of the items collected have
been posted on a website to help police investigators identify
any further victims in order to return them.
Mr Ackerman
allegedly pretended to be a real estate agent or potential home buyer to access
the properties at open houses and on some occasions falsely claimed to work for
an investment firm, police said.
"When
he showed up he was dressed to the nines. He acted the part. He was very
slick," Mr Timmons said.
Among the more than 2,000 items included stolen art,
clothing, handbags, fine wines and jewellery.
Mr Timmons said the
operation, which involved the "touring" of houses that would later be
targeted, was "sophisticated" and included tampering with
surveillance cameras.
"Sometimes
they were just ripped out and other times the cameras would simply go black
until several hours after the burglary occurred," he said.
Mr Ackerman, who is from the Los
Angeles area and has a criminal record, has "connections in New York",
Mr Timmons added.
The
investigation is ongoing as authorities try to establish the extent of the
operation and identify any others who may be involved.
0 Comments