Vehicle Theft Task Force Arrests Five Suspects in Connection with Phoenix Chop Shop

On Tuesday, June 25, 2024, Arizona Department of Public Safety (AZDPS) Vehicle Theft Task Force (VTTF) detectives served a search warrant on a Phoenix business and arrested five suspects in connection with a stolen vehicle investigation.

When detectives served the warrant in the area of 28th Avenue and Buckeye Road in Phoenix, they located five intact stolen vehicles and parts of eight dismantled stolen vehicles. Among the intact vehicles were the following:

• 2005 GMC Yukon (reported stolen in Phoenix)
• 1991 Ford F250 (reported stolen in Avondale)
• 1999 Chevrolet Silverado (reported stolen in Phoenix)
• 2012 Nissan Sentra (reported stolen in Phoenix)
• 2002 Lexus S300 (reported stolen in Phoenix)

Susana Grajales, 49, was booked into the Maricopa County Jail on charges including operating a chop shop, theft of means of transportation, theft of controlled property, and illegal control of an enterprise. Jose Francisco Diaz Celis, 48, faces charges including trafficking in stolen property and theft of means of transportation.

Three additional suspects - Jose Lopez Cruz, 46, Daniel Torres Jurado, 60, and Eddison Elias Macario, 44 – each face a charge of theft of means of transportation.

The VTTF is comprised of city, county, state, and federal law enforcement agencies participating in a concerted effort to identify, apprehend, and prosecute individuals and criminal organizations that profit from the theft of motor vehicles and related crimes.

The VTTF serves a vital mission on behalf of the Arizona Automobile Theft Authority (AATA) to reduce vehicle theft in Arizona by deterring criminal activity through effective and proactive enforcement, prosecution and public awareness programs. The VTTF is substantially funded by an annual grant from the AATA.