Bandits Pose as Officers, Invade Home : Robbery: A jeweler and his family are terrorized by three men wearing phony sheriff’s jackets who make off with cache.

Three armed bandits posing as Sheriff’s Department narcotics officers invaded a house Monday night, terrorizing a jeweler and his family for more than an hour before making off with his valuable inventory, police said.

The robbers, who wore green Windbreakers with “Sheriff” stenciled in yellow over their breast pockets, escaped in the victim’s Mercedes-Benz, Placentia police spokeswoman Corinne Loomis said.

No injuries were reported.

Loomis said investigators had few leads in the case but believe the robbers may have been stalking the victim, Marco Vega, 28, for some time before entering his new two-story home in the 300 block of Dolores Circle.

“They knew his name,” Loomis said. “They were expecting him. They knew he had the goods.”

Loomis said the home invasion began at 9:20 p.m. Monday, when Vega’s wife, Rosemary Garcia, 24, answered a knock at the front door of the house she and her husband moved into three days ago.

Opening the door, Garcia was confronted by three men wearing jeans and green jackets. One of the men flashed a badge and asked for “Marco Vera.” The man identified himself as a narcotics officer, but did not specify which department he was from, Loomis said.

“They told her they wanted to search the house for narcotics,” Loomis said.

Garcia, who was suspicious, stepped out onto the porch and demanded to see a search warrant. As the men continued to talk to her, she peered over their shoulders and noticed a white four-door sedan parked in front, but no marked police unit.

Two of the men appeared to turn away from the house, saying they would get a search warrant and return, Loomis said. But the third man stopped his companions, saying, “We don’t need a search warrant. We’re going in anyway,” Loomis said.

The three then dragged Garcia into the house, where they withdrew handguns and demanded to know where the jewelry was kept, where the safe was and if she had money stashed in the house.

Garcia told them that there was a small cache of jewelry in her car, which was parked in the garage. One of the bandits went to the garage, took the jewelry out of the car, but left the car door ajar.

Back inside the house, the other two robbers bound the hands and feet of Garcia and her sister with duct tape and put them into a downstairs bathroom, Loomis said.

The three men then turned out the lights and waited for Vega to arrive home.

About 30 minutes later, Vega drove his 1986 Mercedes-Benz into the garage and noticed the door ajar on his wife’s car. Feeling uneasy, he walked to the front door and found that the lights were off and the door was unlocked.

As he stepped inside the almost pitch-black living room, the three men attacked him, knocking him to the floor. They bound him with duct tape, Loomis said.

“They kind of stormed him when he came in,” she said. “It was a show of force type thing. We don’t know if they beat him home accidentally or they wanted to wait for him to arrive.”

Vega told the men that his car was loaded with inventory from his business. They then grabbed his car keys and fled. One robber drove off in the Mercedes 300E, license number 2VCP730. The other two jumped into the white sedan and sped off.

The car has not been located, Loomis said, and a value on the stolen merchandise was not immediately determined.

Vega eventually managed to work himself free and call police at 10:48 p.m., Loomis said.

Detectives speculate that Vega may have had some business dealing with the men, since they knew his name. However, he was unable to identify them in the darkness, Loomis said.

Vega does not have a showroom, but sells his jewelry by appointment and referrals. The robbers most probably knew the inventory was in the car, because they did not ransack the house, Loomis said.

Law enforcement officials said it is unusual, though not unheard of, for robbers to pose as police officers.

“I wouldn’t say it’s common, but I have heard of that being done ever since I’ve been in law enforcement,” said Lt. Richard J. Olson of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department. “This does come up from time to time.”

Loomis advised residents to look closely at credentials of people who come to the door, even police badges, which are easy to purchase.

“They see the officers and they automatically open the door,” Loomis said. “You would. I would. It’s an inherent trust people have in law enforcement.”

Times staff writer Rose Kim contributed to this report.

The Robbers

The Sheriff’s Department has released sketches of two of the three bandits who invaded a house in Placentia on Monday night. The suspects identified themselves to the victims as officers and were wearing uniforms stenciled with the word “Sheriff.” No description of the third suspect was available.

Tips on Checking Official Credentials

If a police officer knocks at your door, and you suspect that the person behind the uniform is may be an impostor, here are steps to take:

1. Always check for proper credentials. A uniform or a flash of a badge is not enough. The officer should be able to show you identification as well as a badge.

2. Find out what department the officer is representing and call police headquarters, if necessary.

3. Do not allow an officer without a search warrant to step inside.

4. Look on the street to see if there is a police car. Uniforms and badges are easy to buy; a black and white unit is not. Although undercover officers and detectives use unmarked cars, uniformed officers always use marked units.

Source: Orange County Sheriff’s Department