South Brunswick PD Charge Felony Lane Gang Member With Theft

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, NJ — A member of the Felony Lane Gang was arrested and charged in connection with several car burglaries and thefts, South Brunswick Police Chief Raymond Hayducka announced Friday.

The investigation into the burglaries has spanned over five months and required coordination from multiple law enforcement agencies, Hayducka said.

Jessica Williamson, 39, of Houston, Texas was charged on Thursday with conspiracy to commit burglary and conspiracy to commit credit card fraud.

The South Brunswick investigation began in January when vehicles at two businesses were burglarized by suspects in a white Hyundai Tucson.

They stole purses with credit cards and utilized the stolen cards to make hundreds of dollars worth of purchases at Home Depots, Targets, and an Acme Food Store in East Brunswick, Milltown, North Brunswick, and South Brunswick, police said.

Five days after the cars were broken into, one of the victims reported that the checks that were in her purse were being cashed at various TD Banks and Wells Fargo banks throughout New Jersey, police said. According to the police, suspects had cashed over $30,000 in checks.

In a media release, police said the names on the checks were discovered to be victims who had their cars broken into, and items stolen. The suspects were using the stolen identity to commit the additional fraud, said police.

South Brunswick Detective Tim Hoover circulated images from TD Bank and Wells Fargo Bank surveillance which showed a female wearing a surgical mask, driving cars with out of state license plates, posing as the victims, and sometimes even wearing wigs, to obtain money bypassing checks against their accounts, police said.

With assistance from Detective Chris Fasulo of Mahwah Police, the New Jersey State Police, and Northport Police (NY), Williamson was identified as the suspect. The Lower Merion Township Police Department, PA caught Williamson attempting to pass fraudulent checks at a bank in their jurisdiction, police said.

Police investigation led to linking Williamson to the crimes in South Brunswick along with seven other New Jersey towns, police said. She is lodged in the Montgomery County Correction Center pending extradition.

“It took a lot of time and effort to track down this suspect. I want to thank all the agencies from the Mahwah Police Department to the New Jersey State Police for their help,” Hayducka said.

“It is only through coordination and cooperation that we can track down transient criminals like the Felony Lane Gang. This is excellent police work by Detective Hoover and all those involved.”

According to the FBI, The Felony Lane Gang, originated in Florida a decade ago. They have been targeting moms across the country for years, stealing their purses and using their IDs and credit cards to commit more crimes, like cashing bogus checks or going on shopping sprees with stolen credit cards.

The men do the smash-n-grabs. The women cash the checks, often wearing wigs while sitting in the farthest drive-thru lane to avoid detection – which is where the "Felony Lane Gang" gets its name from, police said.

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