Attacking Gold

Melinda M. Soto, who pleaded guilty, said the crime ring netted $500,000 in gold and other valuables from 37 burglaries in Fairfax and Loudoun counties. Soto revealed the trio trolled the Web for addresses of people with South Asian names and then used a Global Positioning System device to locate the homes.

Soto revealed that they would typically call the home and if no one answered one of them would knock on the front door pretending to be responding to a service request. If no one answered the door, they would break in through the back of the house and steal any jewelry or electronics.