Rio Rancho police tie Santa Fe man to daycare parking lot burglaries

A normal daycare pickup created the opening for two burglaries at La Petite Academy on Quantum Road, where Rio Rancho police say a Santa Fe man was later tied to the thefts.

Ronnie Montano, 49, was summoned in connection with burglary of a vehicle, larceny, credit card fraud and conspiracy to commit credit card fraud after police linked him to the incidents at the Rio Rancho campus, 501 Quantum Rd NE. The case hits differently for parents because the thefts happened in the middle of a routine built around children, car seats and hurried handoffs, the exact kind of moment when a parking lot can go unwatched for only seconds.

In one incident, a victim left a child in the vehicle while it was running and unlocked. By the time she returned, her Apple AirPods were gone and she quickly realized her purse had also been stolen. In another report from the same location, a dash camera captured the same suspect allegedly trying to get into a different vehicle with a screwdriver before leaving unsuccessfully.

Investigators later connected the thefts to unauthorized card activity at Target, then used surveillance footage to identify Montano. Police said he was already known to them from previous vehicle burglary cases.

The charges carry serious exposure under New Mexico law. Burglary of a vehicle is treated as a fourth-degree felony when it involves unauthorized entry with intent to commit a felony or theft. Fraudulent use of a credit card can also be a fourth-degree felony when the value of property or services obtained is more than $500 but not more than $2,500 in a consecutive six-month period. A conviction could bring more than three years in prison.

The setting makes the thefts especially disruptive. La Petite Academy posts hours of Monday through Friday, 6:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., which means its parking lot is active during the exact early-morning and late-afternoon windows when parents are juggling drop-off, pickup and tired children. Rio Rancho police headquarters, at 500 Quantum Road NE, sits just down the same corridor.

The case points to a familiar vulnerability at school and daycare lots: drivers leaving engines running, doors unlocked or bags in plain view while they rush a child inside or back to the car. For families using these lots, the safest pattern is also the simplest one, lock the vehicle every time, shut it off, take purses and cards inside, and avoid leaving anything visible that can be grabbed in a few seconds. Rio Rancho police say vehicle burglaries should be reported by calling the department’s non-emergency line.