Suspect to Plead Guilty in $100m Brink's Jewel Heist

(IDEX Online) - One of seven men accused of stealing $100m in jewelry from a Brink's armored truck in California, USA, has agreed to plead guilty, more than four years after the theft.

Carlos Victor Mestanza Cercado, 32, is expected to enter a guilty plea to a federal robbery charge on November 19. The agreement, signed last week and made public on November 9, relates to what US authorities describe as the largest jewelry heist in the country's history.

According to the plea agreement, Mestanza and accomplices targeted a Brink's tractor-trailer leaving an international jewelry show in San Mateo, California, on July 10, 2022. It was carrying 73 bags of merchandise bound for another exhibition in Pasadena, hundreds of miles to the south.

The group allegedly followed the vehicle for approximately 300 miles, coordinating their movements by cellphone as it stopped at locations in Buttonwillow and Lebec, north of Los Angeles.

In the early hours of July 11, they broke the truck's locks while it was parked at the Flying J rest stop in Lebec and removed 24 bags containing gold, diamonds, rubies, emeralds and luxury watches. The affected merchandise was subsequently valued by the victims at approximately $100m.

Fourteen jewelers suffered losses, with some reportedly losing their entire stock and subsequently leaving the trade.

The case has a long history of disputes over the value of the stolen goods. In August 2022, we reported that Brink's put the insured value at $8.7m, while the affected jewelers maintained that their merchandise was worth closer to $100m.

Brink's argued that customers had declared lower values when arranging transportation and that its liability was limited accordingly. The jewelers brought legal action alleging breach of contract and negligence.

In June 2025, US prosecutors announced the indictment of seven men, including Mestanza, in connection with the theft. Authorities said some of the stolen jewelry had been recovered during searches conducted that month.

Mestanza, an Ecuadorian national, was arrested in Panama in 2024 while travelling from Guatemala to Ecuador.

Under the plea agreement, he will admit to interference with commerce by robbery, an offense carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.

Prosecutors will drop several other charges in return. The actual sentence has not been determined, and the agreement provides for possible deportation after he serves his sentence.

Three co-defendants are scheduled to stand trial in March 2027, two remain at large and another has been deported.

The case also involves separate alleged thefts of electronics from commercial shipments in 2022. Mestanza admitted involvement in those incidents as part of the plea agreement.

It remains unclear how much of the stolen jewelry has been recovered or whether the affected businesses have received compensation.

Pic provided by FBI shows some of the jewelry stolen in the raid.