This Saturday, 49-year-old Chilean Mauricio Bustamante Leiva was arrested for allegedly stealing the Gucci wallet of National Security Secretary Kristi Noem, which contained $3,000 in cash. This incident occurred while she was with her family at a restaurant in Washington on Sunday, April 20th.
According to the information provided by NBC News, Bustamente is an immigrant living illegally in the United States, and he allegedly did not steal from Noem because of her position in the Donald Trump administration, but simply because of the luxury item she possessed.
“There is no evidence that it was because of that (the theft due to his government position). Frankly, it is an attractive bag,” stated United States attorney for the District of Columbia, Ed Martin, to the mentioned media outlet.
“The directive from President Trump is for us to bring charges against these individuals who are in the country illegally and to prosecute them. Also, to deport them when necessary, as soon as possible. What I can say is that he will not be returning to American soil," he added.
Likewise, the lawyer stated about Bustamante that “he is not an amateur. This person is a thief who knows how to do this. You can see it in the way he explored the place.”
Secretary Kristi Noem’s appreciation
The source mentioned stated that witnesses who had access to the security cameras reported that the man sat next to Noem’s table, put his foot in her bag to pull it towards him. He took it, quickly hid it, and left the place passing by security agents who were with the Secretary of National Security.
Through her X account, Kristi Noem referred to the arrest that took place over the weekend. She began by thanking the Secret Service and Immigration and Customs Enforcement “for finding and apprehending the criminal who stole my purse on Easter Sunday while I was having a meal with my family at a restaurant in Washington D.C.”
“This individual is a career criminal who has been in our country illegally for years. Unfortunately, so many families in this country have become victims of crime, which is why President Trump is working every day to make America safe and remove these foreign criminals from our streets,” he concluded."