Four migrants bused to New York City from Texas were arrested for allegedly stealing more than $12,000 in items from Macy’s.
Wrallan Cabezas Meza, 19, Miguel Angel Rojas, 21, Rafael Rojas, 27, and Jose Garcia Escobar, 30, were detained after being tracked down by Nassau County Police. They allegedly drove away from the crime scene on January 9 in a 2006 BMW with a false license plate.
“All four defendants were charged with Grand Larceny in the 3rd Degree. Defendant Meza was issued multiple traffic citations,” the Nassau County Police Department said in a statement. “All four defendants were arraigned on Tuesday, January 10, 2023, at First District Court, 99 Main Street in Hempstead. Defendants Escobar and Rafael Rojas were released with no bail.”
The stolen items were reportedly returned to the Macy’s location at the Roosevelt Field Mall in East Garden City on Long Island.
“Here in Nassau County, our police department is going to be vigilant in making sure that anybody who commits a crime is tracked down, caught and arrested,” Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said during a Monday press conference.
The suspects told a Spanish-speaking Nassau County detective that they came to New York City on a bus from Texas, Detective Lt. Richard Lebrun said.
The report did not indicate when the four men arrived in New York City. Meza reportedly crossed the U.S. southern border on July 4, 2022, with the other three men entering the country in September, according to Nassau County police.
Two of the men, Miguel and Rafael Rojas, had been living at the Westin Hotel, which is housing migrants, on West 57th Street in Manhattan since their arrival to the city, according to police.
The arrests of the four migrants were announced shortly after New York City Democratic Mayor Eric Adams visited the border in El Paso, Texas, earlier this month. Adams argues that more federal assistance is needed at the border and to help migrants entering his city.
The Daily Wire also reported that Adams announced over the weekend that the city would temporarily house migrants at a cruise ship terminal to help handle the growing influx of asylum seekers. The mayor shared plans for the 1,000-person shelter at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal in a press release on Saturday.
“With more than 41,000 asylum seekers arriving in New York City since last spring and nearly 28,000 asylum seekers currently in our care, our city is at its breaking point,” Adams said.
Texas has transported more than 5,200 migrants to New York City since August.
In addition, Texas has bused 9,100 migrants to the nation’s capital since April, more than 1,500 migrants to Chicago since August 31, and more than 890 migrants to Philadelphia since November 15.