Smuggler thefts lead to arrest

ASPEN — A Glenwood Springs man has been arrested for allegedly stealing from vehicles parked at the base of Smuggler Mountain in Aspen and authorities are seeking additional victims of similar thefts.

Luis Alejandro Garcia-Corona was arrested Oct. 6 after a Pitkin County Sheriff’s Office investigator saw him pull into the upper parking lot on Smuggler Mountain Road and enter an SUV parked in the lot. He was found to have taken cash from the SUV, according to a press release issued Thursday by the sheriff’s office.

Under questioning, Garcia-Corona admitted to stealing a $10,000 watch on Sept. 25 from a vehicle parked in the same area, according to the sheriff’s office. The wrist watch was later recovered from Garcia-Corona’s residence in Glenwood Springs.

Garcia-Corona is currently being held in the Pitkin County jail on multiple felony counts and an immigration hold, the press release said.

The sheriff’s office began watching the parking lots at the base of Smuggler after receiving reports of thefts from cars and SUVs parked there. The victims said they parked their vehicles and went hiking up the road, either leaving their vehicles unlocked or leaving their keys hidden somewhere on the vehicle.

Investigators believe there may be other victims of thefts in the Smuggler Mountain Road area. Anyone who wants to report a theft should contact Brad Gibson with the sheriff’s office at 920-5310.

The sheriff’s office is also reminding motorists to refrain from leaving valuable items out in the open in unlocked vehicles and from leaving the keys to a locked vehicle hidden on the vehicle.

“Although Aspen is a safe place to live, we must lock our cars and homes. Leaving valuables lying out in the open invites temptation,” said the press release.