WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal magistrate judge on Wednesday ordered the pretrial detention of a man charged with stealing a purse from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem while she dined at a restaurant under the protection of Secret Service agents.
U.S. Magistrate Matthew Sharbaugh concluded after a hearing that the suspect, Mario Bustamante Leiva, must remain jailed because he poses a flight risk.
Bustamante Leiva, a 49-year-old a native of Chile, pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud, robbery and aggravated identity theft.
Video captured Bustamante Leiva taking Noem’s purse while she dined at a restaurant in Washington, D.C., on April 20, investigators said. Bustamante Leiva also is charged with stealing purses from two other people at other restaurants earlier last month.
Prosecutors didn't argue that Leiva poses any danger to the public. One of his attorneys, Ubong Akpan, said purse snatching is “not the most serious case that we have in the federal courts.”
“He didn't even speak to anyone or touch a complaining witness,” she told the magistrate.
Sharbaugh said the charges are serious, but he acknowledged that the amount of money that Leiva is accused of stealing is relatively small compared to other federal fraud cases.
A Secret Service agent’s affidavit said Bustamante Leiva used Noem’s stolen credit cards to buy over $200 in food and alcohol at a different restaurant. But the indictment says that the amount of that unauthorized charge was just over $15.
The agent’s affidavit doesn’t name Noem, but the information in court records matches details of the theft from her. In a statement, Noem referred to the suspect as a “a career criminal who has been in our country illegally for years.”
Authorities said there was no evidence Noem was targeted because of her position.
A prosecutor, Benjamin Helfand, said Leiva has a history of skipping court dates for similar offenses, doesn’t have any ties to Washington and appears to be “almost transient.”
Akpan said Leiva has ties to New York and New Jersey. Akpan said a language barrier could explain why Leiva missed a recent court date after his arrest in a theft case in New York.
Police and federal agents arrested Bustamante Leiva on April 26. He and a second suspect, Cristian Montecino-Sananza, were indicted last Thursday. Montecino-Sananza isn't charged in the count related to the theft of Noem's purse. The affidavit said Bustamante Leiva appeared to be “acting in concert” with a second suspect during one of the other thefts.
Investigators said they identified Bustamante Leiva as a suspect in the thefts after he used a stolen gift card to make a purchase at a motel. He was shown a photo of Noem and told investigators that he didn’t know who she was, according to the affidavit. Investigators said they recovered Noem’s purse and wallet from his motel room.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has lodged an immigration detainer against Bustamante Leiva.
The case against him is assigned to U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, who was nominated by Republican President Donald Trump.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, testifies before a Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing to examine President Donald Trump's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2026 for the Department of Homeland Security on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Harrison Smith's 14th year as a steadying presence and energizing force in the secondary for the Minnesota Vikings has hardly been smooth.
The undisclosed health-related matter that sidelined him during training camp was a major setback to his conditioning, putting him in catch-up mode for most of the first half of the season. The Vikings defense was more vulnerable than usual over those early games, too.
Then with the offense struggling through the developmental process with quarterback J.J. McCarthy, the Vikings stumbled through November to drop to 4-8 and precipitate their elimination from playoff contention.
But lately?
“I’ve been playing football a long time,” Smith said after Minnesota's victory over the Detroit Lions on Christmas Day, “and I have not had fun like that in my whole career.”
Smith received the NFC Defensive Player of the Week award for that performance in his 206th regular-season game, after logging three passes defensed, two tackles for loss, one sack and one interception. He last won that award in 2018.
With career totals of 21½ sacks and 39 interceptions, Smith is just the second player in NFL history to hit those marks, behind Pro Football Hall of Fame member Ronde Barber, who had 28 sacks and 47 interceptions. Smith is also one of four players all time, with Barber, Brian Dawkins and Charles Woodson, to total at least 50 tackles for loss, 100 passes defensed and 200 regular-season games played. Smith (202) also trails only Jim Marshall (270) and Mick Tingelhoff (240) on the team’s all-time list for career starts.
Following the interception against the Lions, Smith was feted on the sideline in a circle of his teammates. He was the recipient of multiple ovations from the U.S. Bank Stadium crowd. Afterward, as Smith tried to sum up what that experience meant to him, his voice cracked several times before he had to pause to compose himself.
“The fans here have never experienced a Super Bowl. They always show up, and for them to keep showing up ... it just shows how much they love the team, how much they love everything that goes into it," Smith said. “We’re out of the playoffs, and everybody shows up in white. They do their part, and one of these days they’ll get it.”
The scene sure felt like a farewell. But so did Smith's emotional postgame remarks after the Vikings were ousted from the playoffs last season.
Could he envision himself returning for a 15th year?
“I can’t speak on that right now. I’m a very much in-the-moment type of guy,” Smith said.
Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell, who has forged a close relationship with the six-time Pro Bowl safety, has made no secret of his desire to keep Smith in place.
Defensive coordinator Brian Flores has turned over some of the play-calling and decision-making to Smith on the field before and after the snap, and an increased emphasis on blitzing in recent weeks has paid plenty of dividends.
"He has an unbelievable feel of the system. He has an unbelievable feel of what ‘Flo’ and the defensive staff really want to do, and he’s out there playing a game within the game,” O’Connell said. “It’s been spectacular to watch. It’s been awesome from my perspective to watch what he’s able to do at this point in his career mentally, and then physically he’s making a lot of plays as well.”
The uncertainty about next season for the defense stretches beyond Smith, with other expensive veterans facing the possibility of being released for cost savings with the Vikings projected to be well over the salary cap approaching the 2026 league year.
Then there's Flores, whose contract will soon expire, making him a free agent. Though his landmark discrimination lawsuit against the NFL that’s still in the court system nearly four years later continues to loom over any interviews he gets for head coach openings, there's also an opening for another club to try to lure him away with a break-the-bank offer for a lateral move.
O'Connell said this week that he doesn't anticipate such a scenario playing out and hopes to have him as long as he can before he's hired again as a head coach.
“I love Minnesota. I love this team. I love working for and with K.O.," said Flores, who was head coach of the Miami Dolphins from 2019-21 and joined the Vikings in 2023. "This place has shown me a lot of love, and I show them right back, and so I don’t know how much more there is to it. From a football standpoint, it fits. There’s always a, let’s call it, business part of this. But the football all lines up. We’ll just see where it all goes.”
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Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) throws under pressure from Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith (22) during the second half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores stands on the sideline before an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)
