Three people accused of stealing millions of dollars worth of gems and jewelry from salespeople throughout South Florida are facing federal charges, authorities said.
Allan Lucas, Diana Grisales Basto, and Carlos Morales are charged with conspiring to commit Hobbs Act robbery and multiple counts of Hobbs Act robbery, U.S. Department of Justice officials said Wednesday.
Authorities said the group forcefully took and attempted to take jewelry and other property from victims engaged in the business of buying and selling jewelry throughout South Florida between September 2019 and December 2020.
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The robberies occurred in Miami Beach, Boca Raton, Lake Worth, Boynton Beach and Fort Pierce, officials said.
Lucas, 30 and Morales, 44, are both from Miami. Grisales Basto, 37, is a Colombian national.
According to an arrest report, Lucas and Grisales Basto were arrested during a traffic stop. During the stop, Lucas asked a sergeant in Spanish "Between you and me, who set me up?" the report said.
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Lucas and Grisales Basto were already in state custody and scheduled to make their initial court appearance on Friday, July 8th. Morales was arrested on July 2nd.
The case is being investigated by the FBI with help from the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, Miami-Dade and Miami Beach police departments, and other police agencies.
