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2w ago

Chilean Career Criminal Arrested for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s Purse

Authorities apprehended Mario Bustamante-Leiva, an undocumented migrant linked to an organized theft ring, after the brazen Easter Sunday robbery in Washington, D.C.

FILE - Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a news conference at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters, April 9, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, file)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on March 27, 2025 in Bogota, Colombia. (Photo by Alex Brandon-Pool/Getty Images)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a news conference to announce the re-launch of the VOICE office, Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement, with families of victims behind her, at the Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters, Wednesday, April 9, 2025, in Washington.
Kristi Noem, secretary of the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), during a meeting with US President Donald Trump and Nayib Bukele, El Salvador's president, not pictured, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, April 14, 2025. Bukele said a Maryland man deported to his country by Trump's administration would not be returned to the US, even as the Supreme Court has called for Trump's administration to facilitate his release. Photographer: Ken Cedeno/UPI/Bloomberg

Overview

  • Mario Bustamante-Leiva, a 49-year-old Chilean national in the U.S. illegally, was arrested Saturday for stealing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s Gucci bag during an Easter dinner with her family.
  • The stolen bag, valued at $4,400, contained $3,000 in cash, Noem’s DHS badge, passport, driver’s license, apartment keys, blank checks, and other personal items.
  • Surveillance footage revealed the suspect used his foot to slide the bag away before covering it with his jacket and leaving the restaurant undetected by Noem’s Secret Service detail.
  • Authorities believe Bustamante-Leiva is part of a larger East Coast robbery network, with a second suspect, also undocumented, still being sought.
  • ICE has joined the investigation, and officials have stated that Bustamante-Leiva, who has a history of theft in the U.K., will face prosecution and deportation.