Two charged for retail theft, embezzlement from East Bay Home Depot stores
Prosecutors in Alameda County have charged two men for allegedly carrying out multiple organized retail thefts in two cities, the District Attorney's Office said Monday.
Juan Manuel Diaz Ramirez, 23, and Juan Manuel Diaz Tejada, 50, were charged for alleged thefts from Home Depot stores in Hayward and Newark between Dec. 14, 2022 and March 21, 2023.
Prosecutors allege the losses incurred are worth over $100,000.
Ramirez and Tejeda are charged with felony counts of embezzlement, commercial burglary, grand theft, and organized retail theft in concert.
If convicted, Ramirez faces a maximum of seven years in prison and Tejeda faces a maximum of three years and eight months, the Alameda County District Attorney's Office said.
District Attorney Pamela Price said the charges against the men were aided by a $2 million grant from the state to pursue such cases, which her office matched last November.
Alameda County is one of 13 district attorneys' offices across California that received funding to establish new prosecution units to go after crimes like these, said Price.
The defendants are scheduled to appear for arraignment on Sept. 19.