Police arrest suspected ‘bank jugger’ accused of targeting victims leaving banks
By Esteban Reynoso
Click here for updates on this story
MANTECA, California (KCRA) — Manteca police arrested a 25-year-old man accused of “bank jugging,” a crime where suspects follow victims from banks, break into their cars, and steal money bags.
“Unfortunately, this is a common thing that has a name; they call it jugging,” said Sgt. Steven Beermann of the Manteca Police Department.
Beermann explained that the suspect, 25-year-old Malik Antwan Jamal Shackelford of Antioch, targeted victims leaving banks around the city, staking them out and striking when the opportunity arose.
“We’ve had at least 10 recent incidents amounting to over $78,000 worth of loss combined,” Beermann said.
According to police, the suspect followed victims walking out of banks, including a Wells Fargo on Main Street, and broke into their cars to steal money bags if they fit his criteria.
“Do not leave valuables in your car. Your car is to get you from A to B, but you do not want to leave things in your car because it’s easily accessible,” Beermann said.
Maria Corral, a Manteca resident, expressed her shock upon learning that the Wells Fargo she frequents was connected to the suspect’s arrest.
“I come here all the time because this is my bank,” Corral said.
“People should be more trusted on themselves and not people around them. There are a lot of people that will take your money. They’ll jump you for a dollar, or jewelry or whatever you know?” Corral added.
Beermann said the investigation is ongoing, and the suspect has been charged with several crimes, including grand theft and auto burglary.
“We don’t know if this is one person responsible for them all. I can tell you since we did a social media post, we’ve had two calls on unreported juggings,” Beermann said.
Manteca police are urging victims to come forward and are working to gather video evidence of the crimes from nearby businesses.
Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.