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The trio, who all live in Queens, were indicted in connection with a September 2023 burglary at an Ossining residence, the Westchester County District Attorney's Office announced on Wednesday, April 10.
According to the DA's Office, on Friday, Sept. 29 around 12:20 p.m., the three defendants broke into the Ossining home of a local business owner who is Asian. The trio then allegedly stole designer handbags from the home.
The defendants had burglar's tools used to break into homes, officials said, adding that one of the defendants had targeted the residence based on stereotypes about their wealth.
The trio was arrested during a "coordinated takedown" at the victim's residence during the burglary by the Ossining Police Department and other law enforcement agencies.
The three defendants were identified as:
- Juan Carlos Sierra Gonzalez, age 48, of East Elmhurst;
- Jaime Bryan Chang-Fuentes, age 25, of Jamaica;
- Job Vera Zambrano, age 25, of Corina.
All three men were charged with:
- Second-degree burglary;
- Fourth-degree grand larceny;
- Possession of burglar's tools.
Additionally, Gonzalez was charged with two counts of first-degree burglary as a hate crime and two counts of second-degree burglary as a hate crime, officials said.
Westchester District Attorney Miriam Rocah condemned the trio's alleged actions:
"Residential burglaries not only lead to a loss of property but make residents feel vulnerable in their own homes. One of these defendants allegedly targeted the home of Asian residents based on stereotypes about their wealth," she said, adding, "Dangerous generalizations based on a person’s national origin are precisely what New York’s hate crime statutes are designed to address."
Gonzalez and Zambrano were both arraigned on Tuesday, April 9, while Chang-Fuentes, who failed to appear in court, will be arraigned on Tuesday, April 16.
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