$1.5M Theft Ring Involving Beer And Beauty Products Busted, Authorities Say

Twelve men have been indicted on charges they conspired in a $1.5 million series of thefts involving tractor-trailers loaded with clothing, beauty products, auto parts, beer and other cargo, N.J. Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman announced Friday.

The defendants who allegedly stole and fenced the cargo operated the theft ring in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, according to a release from the Attorney General’s Office.

The 12 members of the cargo theft ring allegedly worked together in various combinations to steal tractor-trailers containing cargo from New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, according to the release.

The following 12 defendants, all from New Jersey, were indicted:

• Yoanny Justiz, 32, of North Bergen
• Luis Requena, 24, who was deported after his arrest in 2013
• Marvin Quezada, 40, of Union City
• Pedro Arias, 68, of Elizabeth
• Horacio Llerena-Martinez, 55, of North Bergen
• Osmay Perez-Herrera, 51, of New York
• Wilson Ferrer-Reyes, 51, of Union City
• Hector Rivas, 38, of Union City
• Kenneth Manus, 61, of Norwood
• Angel Dominguez, 44, of Union City
• Carlos Toriac-Almira, 36, of Union City
• Luis Marin, 46, of Union City

Manus owned warehouse on Midland Avenue in Saddle Brook, N.J. where Corning catalytic converters – stolen on June 20, 2012 and worth more than $120,000 – were recovered. Manus allegedly fenced goods stolen by the ring, buying them himself or finding a buyer, according to the release.

At that warehouse, investigators also recovered pallets of beer – including a large amount of Guinness stout – worth more than $23,000, which allegedly were stolen by the theft ring in Easton on June 22, 2012. The tractor-trailer stolen with the beer was recovered in Passaic, N.J., and the tractor-trailer stolen with the catalytic converters was recovered in Paterson, according to the release.

The Thursday indictment stems from “Operation Midnight Run,” a long-term investigation by the State Police Interstate Theft North Unit, the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice Specialized Crimes Bureau and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Border Enforcement Security Task Force, according to the release.

According to the Attorney General’s Office:

• The men allegedly brought the stolen cargo to warehouses and lots in New Jersey, Brooklyn and the Bronx.
• Between June 2012 and April 2015, the defendants allegedly engaged in nine thefts and two purchases of additional stolen goods in which the total value of the cargo and tractor-trailers stolen exceeded $1.5 million.
• The stolen cargo ran the gamut from $120,000 worth of catalytic converters, which allegedly were stolen in Linden, and recovered by investigators at a warehouse in Saddle Brook; to $165,000 worth of Moroccanoil hair and body products stolen in Allentown, and transported through New Jersey to a lot in the Bronx, N.Y.; to $152,000 worth of GNC fish oil capsules stolen in Paterson and recovered at a furniture store in Hillside.

“We allege that this ring was stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars in cargo and transporting it through New Jersey on a regular basis so that they could fence the stolen products and reap major profits,” Acting Attorney General Hoffman said in the release

Director Elie Honig of the Division of Criminal Justice said the State Police and federal government investigated aggressively in “prosecuting this underworld activity, which disrupts commerce, inflicts big financial losses, and frequently finances other crimes.”

The Division of Criminal Justice Specialized Crimes Bureau obtained an 11-count state grand jury indictment that charges all 12 defendants with first-degree conspiracy. Eleven of the defendants also are charged with first-degree money laundering, second-degree theft by unlawful taking, second-degree fencing, second-degree receiving stolen property, and third-degree burglary. The first-degree money laundering charge carries a sentence of up to 20 years in state prison, according to the release.

Photo: Yoanny Justiz