Two Ceres men were apprehended for criminal conspiracy and theft after one man wheeled a cart of stolen goods out of the Walmart Supercenter and the other assisted unloading and driving off.

The crime was reported at 4:28 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 25.

Officer Aaron Pinon was dispatched to the Walmart Supercenter in search of the suspect who left the store with a loaded shopping cart of merchandise he didn’t buy. A witness said the merchandise loaded into a red Kia van by the suspect and his accomplice before the pair fled.

Provided with the license plate of the van and the suspects’ description, Officer Pinon located it parked at Richland Avenue and Evans Road. He found Ryan Ortiz, 26, and Anthony Villarico 44, both of Ceres, and the stolen merchandise in the van. A witness positively identified both Ortiz and Villarico as the thieves. 

Ortiz was charged with petty theft, conspiracy to commit a crime and violating the terms of his probation.

Villarico was charged with petty theft, conspiracy to commit a crime, and possession of stolen property.

Both Ortiz and Villarico were booked into the Stanislaus County Public Safety Center.