Luxury Car Theft Ring Member From Union Co. Pleads Guilty

UNION COUNTY, NJ — A Vauxhall man admitted his role in an interstate luxury car theft ring in front of a federal judge this week, said U.S. Attorney Phillip R. Sellinger.

Sellinger said that Malik Baker, 29, is one of four people who have been charged and pleaded guilty in connection to the theft of at least 10 high-end cars from New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut. Officials said they found one of the stolen vehicles in a shipping container at the port in Newark, en route to Ghana.

Federal officials allege that the theft ring began "as early as July 2019," and said the defendants "often used the stolen cars to steal more cars."

Baker pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to transport stolen vehicles in interstate commerce, and one count of receiving a stolen vehicle that had crossed state lines after being stolen, according to Sellinger's office. Officials said that Baker and his co-conspirators (Hakeem Smith, Nafique Goodwyn, and Bilal Cureton) hid the cars at a location in Irvington.

The cars stolen from New Jersey were all taken in 2019, per Sellinger's office: A 2017 Maserati GranTurismo, stolen from Manalapan, on Aug. 5; a 2014 Lexus GS, stolen from West Long Branch on Aug. 29; and a 2017 BMW M4, stolen from Marlton on Sept. 7.

Officials said in one instance, the defendants used the Maserati stolen from Manalapan to go steal a Range Rover and a Porsche Cayenne in other states.

"When law enforcement attempted to conduct a stop of the Maserati, the Maserati accelerated and crashed head-on into a police vehicle before the suspects fled the scene in another stolen vehicle," Sellinger's office reported. "Law enforcement recovered one of the stolen cars in a shipping container at the port in Newark en route to Ghana, Africa."

According to Sellinger's office, the maximum potential penalty for the charge of conspiracy to transport stolen vehicles is five years in prison, and the maximum potential penalty for the charge of receiving stolen vehicles is 10 years in prison. Both charges are punishable by a fine up to $250,000, "or twice the gross gain or loss from the offenses, whichever is greatest."

Sentencing for Baker is scheduled for March 7, 2024. Smith was sentenced to 41 months in prison in April, and sentencing is pending for Goodwyn and Cureton, Sellinger said.