Community
Serial California Lottery Burglary Suspect Apprehended
| Nature of Incident: | Serial California Lottery Burglary Suspect Apprehended | ||||
| Report Number: | 25-88139, 25-76570, 25-77929, 24-90649, 24,90649 |
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| Location: | 1900 Block Ventura Boulevard 300 Block Lantana Street 500 Block Las Posas Road 2600 Block Ventura Boulevard 700 Block Thousand Oaks Boulevard |
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| Date & Time: | July 2024 – July 2025 | ||||
| Unit(s) Responsible: | Camarillo PD Investigations Bureau California State Lottery Investigations Los Angeles Police Department |
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| (S)uspects, (V)ictims, (P)arty, (D)ecedent |
City of Residence |
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| (S) Raul Jr Najera (45) | Los Angeles | ||||
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| Narrative: |
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| The Camarillo Police Department Investigations Bureau, in coordination with the LAPD and California State Lottery Investigators, have identified Raul Jr. Najera as the prime suspect behind a multi-county burglary spree targeting small businesses for California Lottery tickets in a crime wave stretching back years. Between July 2024 and July 2025, the cities of Camarillo and Thousand Oaks were hit with five targeted burglaries. Small business owners woke up to shattered glass, broken gates, and thousands of stolen lottery scratchers. Based on evidence and investigative tools, Najera was identified as one of the suspects. Using a rotating crew of yet unidentified accomplices and a series of getaway vehicles, Najera led coordinated burglaries on vulnerable “mom-and-pop” stores — stealing nearly $10,000 in lottery tickets that were quickly redeemed in South Los Angeles hours after the crimes. Najera was previously linked to identical burglaries in Camarillo in 2020. On August 12, 2025, during this investigation, Najera was caught by LAPD Investigators in Los Angeles committing a lottery ticket burglary with other co-conspirators. On October 9th, 2025, the criminal cases were presented to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office, and an arrest warrant was issued for Najera’s arrest. Najera is currently in custody at the Los Angeles County Jail, and the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office is actively coordinating with LASO to facilitate his arrest and transfer to Ventura County, where he will face five felony burglary charges (Penal Code 459). The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office is committed to protecting local businesses and holding repeat offenders accountable. We are actively working to identify and arrest Najera’s co-conspirators. |
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| Prepared by: | Detective Kenneth Ledesma | ||||
| News Release Date: | 10/13/2025 | ||||
| Media Follow-Up Contact: | Detective Kenneth Ledesma (805) 388-5115 |
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| Approved By: Captain J. Hendren Booking Photo Release: NO |
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Address/Location
Ventura County Sheriff's Office
800 S Victoria Ave
Ventura, CA 93003
Contact
Emergency: 9-1-1
Non-emergencies: 805-654-9511