Burglary leader who was deported twice, sentenced to 37 years

PLANO, Texas – A Honduras man who was twice deported from the United States has been given a 37-year prison sentence for a series of burglaries in Collin County.

Sergio Cardenas-Salinas recently pleaded guilty to leading a criminal burglary operation targeting gold, jewelry and cash.

He and eight others were arrested last year after being linked to nearly a dozen high-profile burglaries in cities including Plano, Prosper and McKinney.

Prosecutors said they mainly targeted immigrant families because they believed they kept more money and other valuables in their homes.

“They were targeting them,” Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis said.

Willis said Cardenas-Salinas’ group was based in Houston. It consisted of nine crew members from Central and South America.

“Here we have Venezuela, Honduras and Guatemala,” he said. “You know, it’s alarming to think that someone who has been deported twice could come back and become the leader of organized crime here in Collin County.”

The group allegedly drove to Collin County to attack residents of Asian, South Asian and Middle Eastern descent, believing they were easy targets.

“And they kept additional amounts of cash and valuables in their homes,” Willis said.

One victim, who did not want to share his name or show his face on camera, emigrated from India in 2017.

His Plano apartment was broken into and approximately $20,000 worth of items were stolen.

“But unfortunately, as soon as I stepped into my house, the whole house turned upside down,” he said. “So that really scared us.”

A total of 10 families were victimized in Collin County before Plano Police Department detectives used security footage to identify two suspect vehicles.

The group was arrested in September last year.

‘Well, there’s a certain cruel irony in that. I mean, we have legal immigrants and citizens here who contribute to Collin County and who have come to our country for safety. They came to our country for opportunities. And now they have someone who has no respect for the law, should never have been here, as leader and exploiting them, harming them and stealing from them,” Willis said.

Cardenas-Salinas was the first to go to trial.

“We presented all of this to a jury. A jury said this man should go to prison for 37 years,” Willis said.

There’s no word yet on what’s next for the other eight suspects.

Cardenas-Salinas is the oldest of the suspects at 30 years old. The youngest is 19.