(Photo by Kevin Mathewson, Kenosha County Eye)
KENOSHA, Wis. — A trio accused of working together to repeatedly steal from a local Meijer store is now facing a growing list of criminal charges and arrest warrants, as Kenosha County prosecutors allege they operated as an organized retail theft crew and entered the country illegally.
(Kenosha County Sheriff)
According to multiple criminal complaints, Santiago Ome-Sanz, 26, Roberto Ome-Munoz, 49, and Ana Milena Alvares-Ortiz, 33, are each charged with felony retail theft in connection with at least five separate incidents that occurred between May 11 and June 7 of this year. In each instance, prosecutors say the group used methods like barcode switching, skip-scanning, and concealed merchandise to walk out of the store without paying.
Santiago Ome Sanz, who was arrested on June 7 and later transferred to ICE custody, may no longer be in the country. “He may have been deported,” District Attorney Xavier Solis said in court. “He may have been sent to Alligator Alcatraz, or maybe Rwanda or El Salvador. He may have been sent somewhere. But my understanding is that immigration did take him.”
Solis described all three defendants as Colombian nationals believed to be in the country illegally. “What happened with Mr. Ome Sanz is that he was taken into custody. There was an ICE hold detainer placed on him,” he added.
Solis also singled out Alvares-Ortiz during her voluntary court appearance on Monday, describing the defendants as a coordinated crew. “I’m asking for a $10,000 bail,” Solis told Commissioner William Michel. “These are a group of individuals that go and target our businesses and start retail theft. […] We don’t even know who this individual is. But whether she has a prior record or not, we don’t have that information. I mean, our border was a mess the last, what, three or four years, so we don’t even know who’s here.”
Michel ultimately rejected the DA’s request and set a signature bond for Alvares-Ortiz. Solis promptly filed a motion to increase her bail, which will be heard by Judge Anthony Milisauskas on July 22.
Alvares-Ortiz is now charged in two separate felony cases. She was first charged on June 10 and ordered to appear in court July 15. A $2,500 arrest warrant was later issued for a second case on June 30.
Meanwhile, Roberto Ome-Munoz has now been charged in three felony retail theft cases, including one where he fled the scene in a separate vehicle while Santiago and Ana were detained. Two cash warrants—$1,500 and $2,500—were issued last month, both of which Ome-Munoz posted on July 1. He appeared in court July 10 and had his bail continued. His next court date is scheduled for August 27.
Ome-Munoz has a prior retail theft case from December 2023. Then-District Attorney Michael Graveley’s office, under the direction of prosecutor Emily Gaertner (D), dismissed the felony charge and allowed him to plead guilty to a misdemeanor. He was sentenced to just one year of probation.
Santiago Ome Sanz, whose exact whereabouts remain unknown, was out on bond for a separate misdemeanor traffic case when the retail theft charges were filed. He was given $1,500 bail on June 9 and posted it nearly two weeks later. After missing a court date on June 27—reportedly due to ICE detention—a bench warrant was issued and his bail forfeited. On June 30, another $2,500 arrest warrant was filed in yet another felony case.
DA Solis has made clear he views the defendants as a public threat. “We do believe that they are a threat risk,” he told the court Monday. “That’s why we’re asking for a very high cash bond.”
All three cases remain active in Kenosha County Circuit Court.
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8 Responses
Alligator island time
Michaels needs to go to Alcatraz Island also, it should be extended to illegal criminals and traitors to their home and country.
Court Commissioner Michel appears just as incompetent as Smathers. Seriously wondering about all our Judges since they appoint these weak Commissioner’s who support criminals.
Kudos to DA Solis for having the fortitude to deal with these people.
We voted Solis in now let’s vote these Judges who appointed these Commissioners out. If that means all of them, so be it. We owe that much to DA Solis. A man who believes in and works hard for justice. Kenosha’s judicial system needs a clean sweep.
I want to believe we all know of a very good Attorney who is also a very good Author who I personally think would make a great Judge. He knows the law. Issue may be, would he be willing to take the pay cut? We need to encourage him to help save our city.
Let’s support our own choice for Solis by doing exactly that, voting out these weak judges.
That said, who’s going to run. And win ??
The other day, a commissioner stated on the record that he doesn’t trust or believe in ICE’s mission and gave a very low cash bond to a defendant who had already been removed from the country, even after the State requested a significant bond to ensure the defendant would appear at future court hearings. The commissioner is n question was not Michel.
There’s no doubt our district attorney is a true patriot. The promises he made during the campaign have been honored, and every day his team is doing better. Let’s remember how 50% of the former DA’s staff resigned intentionally and tried to convince the rest to do the same. He believes in his mission and aims to reduce crime in our county to the lowest levels in history.
You got this Xavs!
Put these illegal thugs in Alligator Island and then fly them to El Salvador! I’m tired of these clowns coming to the USA and thinking they have a right to be here!
Even ADA Bauer, who had previously quit the District Attorney’s Office after being influenced by Carli and her followers, returned upon learning that the new District Attorney was not the unfair and inhumane individual they had attempted to portray.
Their actions harmed the community and undermined the administration of justice, rather than the new District Attorney.