Colombian national pleads guilty in multi-state burglary ring targeting Asian American business owners

A Colombian national living illegally in the United States has pleaded guilty in federal court for his role in what prosecutors described as a coordinated, multi-state burglary scheme targeting Asian American business owners in Oregon and Washington.

John Alexander Quintero, also known as Edwin Andres Cadena-Pineda, 45, entered a guilty plea to one count of conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen goods, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon.

The case centers on a string of residential burglaries in October 2025 that authorities say were not random. Investigators allege Quintero and six co-conspirators traveled from state to state, booked short-term rentals, surveilled potential victims, and focused on Asian American business owners while they were away from home working.

According to court documents, the crew studied victims and their residences before striking. Prosecutors say they used signal-jamming technology, perimeter countersurveillance, and seven-way group calls to coordinate the break-ins. Once inside, they allegedly ransacked homes and made off with cash, jewelry, designer handbags, wallets, travel documents, and other valuables.

Authorities tied the group to burglaries in Auburn, Washington, on October 3, 2025; Gresham, Oregon, on October 5; Eugene, Oregon, on October 6; and Salem, Oregon, on October 9. In each case, investigators said, the victims were Asian American business owners who had been away tending to their businesses.

The case took a decisive turn between the Eugene and Salem burglaries, when detectives with the Eugene Police Department began tracking the group’s movements. After the Salem burglary, investigators learned the suspects had returned to a rental property in Eugene. Police executed a search warrant there that same night.

Investigators recovered money and property believed to have been stolen from multiple residences, along with more than a dozen cell phones thought to have been used by the burglary crew. They also found evidence of money wires to Bogota, Colombia, Colombian travel documents, including passports, and commercial-grade Wi-Fi signal jammers that were reportedly still plugged in and charging.

When officers arrived to execute the warrant, Quintero and the others fled into a nearby wooded area, authorities said. All seven were eventually detained. Later searches of the seized devices uncovered what investigators described as additional evidence linking the suspects to the conspiracy. According to prosecutors, the phones contained shared messages, surveillance communications, and coordinates for homes that had been burglarized. Quintero also allegedly researched jewelry values after the Auburn burglary, obtained contact information for a Colombian shipping company after the Eugene burglary, and contacted that company before returning to the Eugene rental property to package stolen goods on the night of the Salem burglary.

A federal grand jury in Eugene returned an indictment on November 20, 2025, charging Quintero and the six other alleged members of the crew with conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen goods. Quintero made his initial appearance in federal court on December 3, 2025, and was ordered detained.

He now faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, and three years of supervised release. Sentencing is set for June 30, 2026.