Prolific Panty Bandit Busted



A panty bandit who police called prolific was caught red-handed Wednesday night, the Los Angeles Police Department said.

Carlos Olivas, 35, was arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary in connection to what investigators believe is “organized retail crime.”

The owner of lingerie shop “Excitement” got an alert that someone was breaking into the store and called 911.

Olivas was outside of the store, seen on surveillance footage attempting to get inside.

He was taken into custody by a sergeant, LAPD said. Investigators quickly learned it wasn’t the first time that Olivas had allegedly hit the store on Ventura Boulevard in Woodland Hills.

Investigators also determined it wasn’t the start of the accused panty bandit’s high-volume career.

“We had dubbed this man the Panty Bandit,” said Det. Merrill Dunn in a statement released by the LAPD. “His penchant for breaking into lingerie shops told us this was a matter of organized retail crime, which means he’s reselling the merchandise to fences or shipping it out of the country.”

The first panty thefts began in January when the suspected burglar broke into Les Corest Lingerie in Woodland Hills. The suspect then also broke into Romantic Inc. on Sherman Way and Van Nuys Boulevard, making off with more than $10,000 worth of unmentionables.

Olivas’ bail was set at $200,000 based on each crime.

The LAPD also happened to bust another burglar at a Hollister store in the Topanga Mall on the same evening who the store owner said had stuck before.

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Marco Naranjo, 21, was arrested on suspicion of commercial burglary and his bail was set at $80,000.

Naranjo was found a mile away from the store with the stolen items, “already shooting heroin into his arm,” according to the LAPD.

Photo Credit: Excitement

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