3 charged in ink cartridge theft ring

SALT LAKE CITY — Three Los Angeles men were charged Wednesday with being part of a theft ring that steals ink cartridges and and sells them in California.

The trio is accused of stealing more than $10,000 worth of ink cartridges from office supply stores across Utah.

Julio Pena, 55, made $100 a day driving Rolando Reyes, 44, and Mauricio Espinosa-Rojas, 41, around to Office Depot and Office Max stores in the state, according to charges filed Wednesday in the 3rd District Court.

On Jan. 27, a store security officer at Office Max, 1180 E. Brickyard Road, called police and the three men were apprehended. A GPS system indicated that they had made multiple visits to Office Depot and Office Max stores throughout Utah, the charges state.

An Office Max employee determined that $10,518 worth of cartridges were stolen just from Office Max locations, according to prosecutors. Several other ink cartridges in the vehicle were taken from other stores.

Reyes, Espinosa-Rojas and Pena were each charged with theft by receiving stolen property, a first-degree felony. Reyes was also charged with theft by receiving stolen property, a third-degree felony. A laptop computer that was stolen in 2010 during a residential burglary in California was located in Reyes' backpack, the charges state.

— Hunter Schwarz