A Bronx car-theft crew behind a major $3 million crime ring was busted after members were caught flashing wads of cash and stolen vehicles on social media, authorities said.
Six members of the brazen crew were caught targeting car dealerships, cell phone stores and ATM businesses amid a soaring grand larceny auto rate in New York City, according to Attorney General Letitia James.
They pleaded guilty to more than 200 thefts last week and all six were sent to prison, prosecutors said on Friday.
In total, the thieves stole a staggering $3 million worth of goods, including at least 54 vehicles. Members of the crew often rubbed their misdeeds in the face of investigators by flaunting stolen cars and piles of cash on Instagram.
Bronx residents Willie Baines, Josepher Cartagena, Brandon Collazo-Rivera, Justin Herrera, Douglas Noble, and Alexander Santiago would smash windows of car dealerships at night and drive cars right through the broken glass, prosecutors said.
In some instances, they would taunt police by waiting for cops to respond to burglar alarms before leading them on high-speed chases through residential neighborhoods in scenes that wouldn’t be out of place in a “Fast & Furious” movie, officials said.
A 13-month investigation led by the NYPD’s Auto Crime Unit and the AG’s Organized Crime Task Force was dubbed “Operation Redline,” due to the redlining of speedometers in the stolen cars as the goons reached dangerously high speeds.
The reckless criminals would often take to Instagram just moments after their crime sprees to show off the stolen goods, which helped investigators connect them to the crimes.
The crime spree spanned businesses in the city, its northern suburbs, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut.
“The six individuals convicted and sentenced went on a crime spree that impacted businesses and residents throughout downstate New York,” said James in a statement.
“These burglars left a trail of broken glass, smashed businesses, and dangerous high-speed chases in their wake. I thank my partners in local law enforcement for their coordination and support as we took down this dangerous crew. Our communities are safer now that these six individuals have been brought to justice.”
Cartagena, 27; Collazo-Rivera, 26; Noble, 29 and Santiago, 28, all pled guilty to second-degree grand larceny, officials said.
Herrera, 23 pled guilty to third-degree burglary. Baines, 47, pled guilty to attempted third-degree burglary.
They all received undisclosed prison sentences, prosecutors said without going into specifics of their bids.
The NYPD announced last month it was revving up its auto crime division as car thefts soared to their highest level since 2006 citywide, fueled by a TikTok trend that challenges teens to steal Kia and Hyundai models that don’t require “key fobs.”
Grand larceny auto was up 97% over the past 28 days compared to this time last year in the Bronx, and car thefts were also up 31% citywide over the same period, according to NYPD statistics.
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Brazen NYC crew behind $3M auto theft ring busted after flashing wads of cash, cars on social media - New York Post
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