DPS trooper arrested in connection with ‘chop shop’

EDINBURG — Hidalgo County sheriff’s deputies arrested a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper Friday morning in connection with an alleged auto insurance scam.

Justice of the Peace Rosa Treviño arraigned Trooper Jesus Saul Barron, 32, on charges of insurance fraud and securing execution of a document by deception, both third-degree felonies. Barron was released on two $10,000 personal recognizance bonds.

He has signed a confession to the charges, according to a probable cause affidavit.

The case dates back to Sept. 12, when Barron reported his 2006 Ford F-150 stolen from a parking lot at a flea market in Donna. Sheriff’s deputies took a stolen vehicle report that day from Barron, court documents show. Barron then received a $28,051.05 check from his insurance company for the value of the truck.

A separate investigation into a stolen truck led to the charges against Barron. On Nov. 6, a woman told deputies someone stole her truck from her home on Juanita Street in Donna. The investigation led deputies to Alfonzo Ramirez’s home on Mile 9 North in Donna. Ramirez had the frame of the stolen truck, with the rest of the parts strewn nearby.

Ramirez, 23, also had pieces from Barron’s vehicle. He confessed to stealing the woman’s truck and also told investigators a man had paid him $500 to dispose of the man’s F-150. Deputies arrested Ramirez on Nov. 7. He was charged with felony theft and subsequently went free on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond.

After his arrest, Ramirez identified Barron in a police lineup as the man who sold him the F-150. Deputies arrested Barron, who then signed a confession.

Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Treviño released a statement saying Ramirez was running a “chop shop” operation in which he cut several stolen trucks into pieces for sale. Investigators expect to make more arrests in connection with the case, Treviño said.

The sheriff also said auto theft is “one of the most challenging crimes” Hidalgo County faces.

“It is extremely disappointing to have a member of the state’s premier law enforcement agency engaging in this type of criminal conduct,” he said.

DPS has placed Barron on paid suspension, pending the outcome of the criminal investigation and, possibly, a separate internal investigation, said Tom Vinger, an Austin-based spokesman for the agency.

Barron has served with the department since January 2002, most recently working as a commercial vehicle enforcement trooper inspecting tractor-trailers and buses at the Los Indios port of entry.

He faces up to 20 years in prison and fines up to $20,000 if convicted on both charges.