South American Theft Groups (SATGs) have been categorized by the FBI as a trans-national criminal network. They are bands of thieves consisting of both male and female adults who travel the globe conducting various criminal theft activities. While most are from Colombia, other identified members have originated from Peru, Chile, Venezuela, Mexico and other areas. SATGs have existed for decades. Many law enforcement officers (LEOs) believe the groups started as pickpockets after being professionally trained at the School of Seven Bells, or so legend has it. The criminal activities have expanded to general distraction thefts (creating a distraction to rob victims), lotto flim-flam (passing forged winning tickets), retail boosting (using special bags to default security devices in stores), bank surveillance (following bank customers who have withdrawn large amounts of cash and inconspicuously cutting the right, rear tire of the victim's vehicle to render the tire flat), store surveillance (following customers who have purchased large ticket items), and armed robberies of jewelers. Members of the groups are interchangeable, however many specialize in one area. They use aliases, are able to obtain fraudulent identity documents and are highly mobile; they are able to travel anywhere at any time. They speak Spanish, often in code, and communicate via prepaid cellular phone, walkie-talkies, Nextels, or hand signals. Most are in the United States illegally and have extensive criminal histories. Some have even been previously deported. They will often claim being from Puerto Rico or Mexico. They utilize rental vehicles (often SUVs) via a fraudulent or stolen credit card, or late model used vehicles Under a fraud identity with a paper license tag. .
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