A man found guilty of breaking into nearly a dozen cars at a gym in Madison will face up to 82 years in prison once law enforcement are able to take him into custody.
Victor Andrew Ogiste, 29, of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., was convicted by a Madison County Circuit Court on Tuesday of 11 counts of auto burglary and one count of conspiracy after a two-day trial. Going into the trial, Ogiste informed his attorney he would not be returning to Mississippi and was subsequently tried in absentia, meaning he was not present, but legal representation was. His whereabouts are currently unknown, Madison and Rankin Counties’ District Attorney Bubba Bramlett said on Thursday, but once taken into custody, he will be extradited to Mississippi.
On Oct. 13, 2023, officers with the Madison Police Department were notified that multiple cars located in the parking lot of Burn Boot Camp had been burglarized. All the victims had been attending a 5 a.m. workout class and were not aware until afterward that their cars had been broken into. Upon the class ending, victims walked out to their cars and found windows had been smashed and various items had been stolen, including purses, wallets, bank cards, checkbooks, and drivers’ licenses.
Officers immediately began reviewing surveillance video and noticed a 2022 Toyota Rav4 enter the parking lot shortly before 5 a.m. An individual exited the car after the workout class began, and within a span of 20 minutes, broke into 11 vehicles before returning to the passenger side of the Toyota and being driven away. Officers were able to obtain the tag number of the vehicle and uploaded it to their license plate reader system.
MPD was also made aware of an incident at Burn Boot Camp’s Oxford location, in which multiple cars were broken into during a 5 a.m. workout class there on Oct. 11, 2023. The investigation led officers to a rented Airbnb in Hattiesburg, where they found some of the stolen items but no suspects. They did, however, discover that the suspected burglars had switched out cars and were driving a Chrysler 300, and were able to obtain a new tag number.
Police in Trussville, Ala., located the vehicle and made a traffic stop. That’s when Ogiste, who officials said is a nonviolent habitual offender, was taken into custody. They also obtained Ogiste’s cell phone, which had previously been used to Google the locations of Burn Boot Camps. His map’s location history also placed him as the driver at the scene of the Madison gym, while further investigation found evidence that he and a handful of others had traveled from Florida to multiple southeastern states before breaking into cars at the Madison and Oxford gyms.
“This began as multiple auto burglaries in the early morning hours with zero eyewitnesses. If not for the persistence and hard work of the Madison Police Department, it would have never been solved,” DA Bramlett said. “Using all sorts of investigative tools, MPD was able to follow what was essentially a series of breadcrumbs until they were able to identify and gather evidence on the subject.”
Bramlett also said that without the help of law enforcement agencies in different parts of Mississippi and other states, Ogiste’s arrest more than likely would not have happened.
“Thankfully, multiple law enforcement agencies from the across the region were willing to work with MPD to help gather not only additional evidence but eventually the suspect and his cell phone which provided a treasure trove of data that allowed my office to map the geolocation data needed to solidify the case of Mr. Ogiste,” he said. “I have no doubt that the suspect’s only reason for being in Mississippi, or any of the previous locations they had been in, was to break into cars.
“These men were professional thieves, and without the work of MPD, they would probably still be out there smashing windows and stealing people’s belongings. We are lucky to live in a county where the police take these things seriously and tirelessly attempt to solve crimes no matter how little they have to go on in the beginning.”
Information on Ogiste’s co-defendant was not released as part of Bramlett’s announcement. However, his office did note that he also failed to appear in court and has warrants out for his arrest, with future prosecution incoming.
