Overview
- On May 23, Martha Gutierrez DeRomero reported that two masked men stole her Chevrolet van at knifepoint on Avenue 21 and Road 26 while it carried swap-meet goods valued at about $60,000.
- Deputies from Madera County, the CHP and Merced County responded to the 911 call and later found the van abandoned on Sandy Mush Road.
- A second interview revealed that DeRomero and her boyfriend, Alfredo Delezma, had concocted the carjacking to file a fraudulent insurance claim.
- DeRomero was booked into the Madera County Jail on May 29 on charges of felony insurance fraud, conspiracy and filing a false police report.
- Alfredo Delezma remains at large but is expected to face related charges as the investigation proceeds.