Three Texas men are currently wanted in connection with a brazen daylight theft that occurred at the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine in Oklahoma as a man stepped away to pray, following what appears to have been a calculated sequence of events leading to the theft of $25,000. According to reports provided by OKC FOX, the victim had withdrawn the cash for the purpose of purchasing a new vehicle before he became the target of Gabriel Lara, Nicholas Barrientos, and Ruben Barrientos.
The incident occurred on November 5, and court documents state that the criminals initiated their ploy by stealing a license plate from another car at Crossroads Mall, covering their Texas tag to avoid detection, then followed the unsuspecting man to the bank and subsequently to the shrine. Despite the victim's attempt to park away from other cars, "he parked away from other cars and walked up the hill to pray," as reported by KFOR. The car's window was smashed, and the cash was taken in a matter of moments.
Later developments revealed that the suspects were stopped for a traffic violation in Wichita, Kansas, where officers noted discrepancies in their travel stories and discovered two stacks of cash. Although no drugs were found and the suspects had no prior drug charges on record, they were cited and released. The source of the money was unclear, with the driver claiming it came from the sale of a vehicle, as detailed in court documents obtained by KOCO.
All three men have been formally charged with larceny, burglary, and a pattern of criminal offenses, names and details have been provided in arrest warrants, further substantiated by the victim and surveillance, pointing to a planned heist, with all suspects still at large. The black Chrysler originally displaying a Texas tag at the heart of this investigation was seen on surveillance making a U-turn at I-240 and Shields before pulling into the parking lot at Plaza Mayor in Oklahoma City, where the criminal acts commenced.
