Last member of car theft ring sentenced

ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Dennis L. Jones, 33, of Fort Lauderdale, FL, who was convicted of bank fraud, was sentenced to serve 57 months in prison, by U.S. District Judge David L. Larimer. Jones is the final defendant in a series of “smash and grab” car robberies to be sentenced.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa M. Marangola, who handled the case, stated that between December 2021, and March 2022, Jones and three others drove up the East Coast from Florida to Rochester, NY, for the purpose of stealing purses from unoccupied vehicles in gym parking lots, retail parking lots, hiking trails and residential neighborhoods.  The defendants used stolen driver’s licenses to cash stolen checks totaling $55,310 at local banks. Over 20 victims were identified in the Rochester Area, as well as additional victims along the East Coast.

In addition, defendant Liza J. Freiman, 33, of Boston, MA, was sentenced to serve 12 months in prison; defendant Allen Clark, 34, of Fort Lauderdale, FL, was sentenced to 84 months in prison; and defendant Ja’Cari Robinson, 22, also of Fort Lauderdale, FL, was sentenced to six months in prison. 

The sentencing is the culmination of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Matthew Miraglia.

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