Man gets probation after ‘spending spree’ in Crystal Lake using stolen credit cards

A Vernon Hills man accused of going on a “shopping spree” in Crystal Lake, using a wallet stolen from a shopping cart, has been sentenced to two years of felony probation, McHenry County court records show.

Victoriano Perez, 20, who also has a Paris, Kentucky, address listed in court records, pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts of identity theft each involving $2,000 to $10,000.

The charge is a Class 2 felony, which carried a possible sentence of three to seven years in prison. It also was probational.

As part of the plea deal, prosecutors dismissed additional charges, including theft and possessing three or more of another’s credit or debit cards, court records show.

Perez also was sentenced to 64 days in the county jail, but with day-for-day credit, the sentence is considered served, according to Judge James Cowlin’s sentencing order. He also was ordered to complete 25 hours of public service and to have no contact with the McHenry and Cary women whose identities were stolen.

Perez was accused of distracting a woman so Ivan Ramos-Murillo could steal her wallet from her shopping cart, according to the complaint against Perez.

“Both subjects then went on a shopping spree with (the) credit cards,” according to the complaint.

Perez was accused of using several stolen credit cards in November 2021 to buy a Macbook Pro computer and gift cards from Best Buy, Sam’s Club and Jewel-Osco in Crystal Lake, according to the complaint.

In a separate case, Perez was accused of working with Ramos-Murillo to distract a woman so Ramos-Murillo could steal a wallet from her purse, according to the complaint.

Perez was accused of using her documents to fraudulently obtain money, goods or services from Costco and Walgreens, both in Lake in the Hills, according to the indictment.

The indictments state that both Perez and Ramos-Murillo, 27, of Vernon Hills, were charged with multiple counts of identity theft, among other charges.

Ramos-Murillo also was charged in November 2021 with misdemeanor theft in a separate case.

He was accused of stealing another woman’s wallet while at Target in Algonquin, according to the complaint.

He was released on a $150 bond from the Algonquin Police Department and ordered to appear in court in December 2021. He did not and has not appeared in court since, court records show.

A warrant for his arrest remains active.

An attempt to reach Perez’s attorney on Monday was not successful.