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<\/p>\nSAN FRANCISCO (KRON) \u2014 Prosecutors charged three Vallejo men with a series of pickpocket crimes committed in San Francisco\u2019s Chinatown.<\/p>\n
Stefan Ruset, 35, Marian Constantine, 30, and Florin Matei, 26, were charged with grand theft and possession of stolen property, District Attorney Brooke Jenkins announced Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The San Francisco Police Department said it began receiving reports in April from merchants, shoppers, and community members about pickpocket thieves in Chinatown. One victim lost $4,000 in property.<\/p>\n
Undercover officers and the Real Time Investigation Center identified Ruset, Constantine, and Matei as suspects.<\/p>\n
On May 16, investigators tracked the Vallejo trio\u2019s vehicle entering San Francisco using Automated License Plate Reader cameras and a drone. The group parked near Chinatown and began casing for victims throughout the neighborhood, police said.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlainclothes officers observed the group working together to steal property from victims while acting as lookouts for one another,\u201d SFPD wrote.<\/p>\n
In broad daylight, the drone recorded one of the men discretely reach into victims\u2019 pockets, purses, and backpacks, while two accomplices stretched their jackets out to form a screen. (The SFPD\u2019s drone video can be viewed in the video player above.)<\/p>\n
Undercover officers hauled Ruset, Constantine, and Matei away in handcuffs, recovered stolen property, and returned it to the victims.<\/p>\n
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A police drone captures thieves on camera in San Francisco\u2019s Chinatown on May 16, 2026. (Image courtesy SFPD)<\/p>\n
The next day, officers searched the trio\u2019s Vallejo home and found thousands of dollars in cash, as well as additional stolen property.<\/p>\n
\u201cCriminals targeting Chinatown, or any other community in San Francisco, is simply unacceptable,\u201d said Police Chief Derrick Lew.<\/p>\n