Seven NJ men stole more than a dozen luxury cars in a grand theft ring, the FBI say

Seven New Jersey men have been charged with stealing more than a dozen luxury cars in both the Garden State and New York, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.

According to a statement from the US Attorney’s Office in New Jersey, a Virginia man was involved in the car theft, but he had not yet been arrested.

The investigation began in November 2021, when police began investigating a series of luxury car thefts and discovered that the eight men and others conspired to possess, receive, conceal, sell, dispose of and/or sell the stolen cars in New York. or to transport. York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and elsewhere, the office said.

The 14 cars were stolen from across the state, including a 2021 Auid Q5 from Jersey City in November 2021, a 2020 Range Rover stolen from Tenafly in April 2022 and a 2021 BMW M3 stolen from Spring Lake three months later stolen, according to a criminal complaint. They have an estimated total value of at least $550,000.

Some of the stolen cars were used to commit other crimes, including the theft of additional cars, shootings and murder, officials alleged. No further details on this aspect of the case were provided Thursday.

From November 2021 to July 2022, one of the charged men, Ahmad Franks, 24, of Newark, exchanged photos of at least 400 known or suspected stolen cars with at least a dozen conspirators, authorities said.

In addition to Franks, the other men charged were fellow Newark residents Saquan White, 23, Nathan Braswell, 20, Idn Bellamy, 24, and 20-year-old Zamir Wright, the office said. Ryan Bowen, 26, and Khyree Lawrence, 20, both of East Orange, also faced charges related to car thefts.

The seven men were all charged with conspiring to receive, possess or sell stolen vehicles in interstate commerce, federal prosecutors said.

Franks was also charged with five counts of possession of a stolen vehicle and one count of interstate transportation of a stolen vehicle. Bellamy is also charged with one count of possession of a stolen vehicle, and Buhari is charged with one count of sale, receipt or possession of a stolen vehicle, officials said.

45-year-old Woodbridge, Virginia man Mohammed Buhari was charged with conspiracy to receive, possess or sell stolen vehicles in interstate commerce, as well as one count of sale, receipt or possession of a stolen vehicle, the office said.

Bellamy and Lawrence were arrested Wednesday and made their first appearance in federal court in Newark, while Buhari remains at large, investigators said.

The remaining men were already in custody on previous charges and will appear in court at a later date, according to federal authorities.

“The defendants are accused of orchestrating a brazen conspiracy to steal high-end luxury vehicles, targeting our community and profiting from their illegal activities,” U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said in a statement.

“These charges underscore our commitment to working with all of our law enforcement partners to protect the community from the variety of crimes committed by those who seek to unjustly enrich themselves by victimizing our residents.”