Suspects posing as delivery persons in California home invasion robbery targeting crypto wealth arrested in Texas

Two Texas residents were arrested in an attempted home invasion robbery in California involving fake delivery persons, authorities said on Wednesday.

The robbery happened on Sept. 5 in San Jose and the images of the men were captured on a home surveillance camera. The San Jose Police Department said the suspects were seen attempting to deliver a package to the person when one of the suspects, who was wearing a ski mask, pulled out a firearm.  

A San Jose Police Department spokesperson said the resident was not home at the time, and the suspects fled before police arrived. Automated license plate reader cameras were able to identify the suspect vehicle, and detectives identified two Dallas residents, 20-year-old Damian Vielma and 19-year-old Jeremiah Clybourn, as the suspects, according to police. 

Detectives discovered evidence linking both suspects to multiple crimes spanning various jurisdictions, including in Atherton, California, and typically targeting victims with high amounts of cryptocurrency wealth, while posing as delivery personnel, police said. 

Police spokesperson Stacie Shih said that is was unclear how the suspects knew the victims had large crypto holdings.

"The suspects were targeting victims that were known for their cryptocurrency wealth, so our detectives are actively investigating to see how they obtained that information," Shih said.