Murfreesboro, TN - A multi-agency effort led by the Murfreesboro Police Department (MPD), with assistance from the Lebanon Police Department (LPD), has dismantled a retail theft ring, resulting in four arrests and an active warrant for a fifth suspect.

Lebanon police apprehended Laura Natalia Alvarado-Martinez, 48, Rogelio Arpero-Murillo, 32, Oscar Balderas, 36, and Edson Odin Ponce-Cotero, 37, on Wednesday, June 11. Alvarado-Martinez and Arpero-Murillo face two counts of felony theft each, while Balderas and Edson Ponce-Cotero are charged with one count each. Authorities have issued an arrest warrant for 21-year-old Caleb Abraham Ponce-Cotero.

The suspects are accused of shoplifting large quantities of clothing and using a device to bypass security measures at Burlington Coat Factory on Medical Center Parkway and TJMaxx on June 5. Investigators also linked the group to a felony theft at Burlington on April 24, with additional charges pending for another theft at the same store on June 9.

MPD’s Real Time Crime Center analysts flagged two vehicles in Lebanon connected to the thefts through a license plate recognition alert. Officers issued an attempt-to-ID bulletin and later notified LPD of the suspects’ possible location. The four individuals were taken into custody and returned to Murfreesboro.

Police urge anyone with information on Caleb Abraham Ponce-Cotero’s whereabouts to contact Detective Gorham at 629-201-5507.

Alvarado-Martinez is being held at the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center on a $17,000 bond, Arpero-Murillo on a $23,000 bond, Edson Ponce-Cotero on an $18,000 bond, and Balderas on a $20,000 bond. They are scheduled to appear in General Sessions Court on July 14.