They soon learned the agony of removing feet.
Three men have been accused of stealing more than $311,000 worth of Air Jordan sneakers from a stopped train in a California ghost town — a daring heist that was foiled by a GPS tracker attached to the stolen goods.
Brian Quintero Echaravia, 18, Bernardo Romeroquintero, 34, and Olegario Flores, 26, were arrested Nov. 22 for stealing 1,278 Nike Air Jordan 11 Retro shoes worth $311,832 after breaking into a parked train in the Mojave Desert, according to the Orange County District Attorney. Lawyer's office.
The alleged sneaker thieves then transferred the shipment to a rented U-Haul truck and transported the stolen goods to Anaheim.
Prosecutors said their plan lost momentum when police tracked a GPS tracker Nike had placed in the shipment — to prevent theft — to its exact location.
“Organized robbery rings are no match for the sophistication and determination of law enforcement to track, arrest and prosecute these thieves to the fullest extent of the law,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said.
“In Orange County, it's not a question of if you're going to get arrested, it's a question of when you're going to get arrested, and you're going to be prosecuted.”
Prosecutors said police and the railroad company BNSF were initially alerted to the disappearance of a shipping container holding the expensive shoes from the train.
Investigators from the California Highway Patrol GPS-tracked the car to an Anaheim parking lot and seized luxury basketball shoes from inside the rental truck.
All three men were charged with felony theft of merchandise and receiving stolen property, prosecutors said.
Romeroquintero and Flores were also slapped with possession of burglary tools, a misdemeanor.
They face a maximum prison sentence of three years if convicted on all charges.
