Detroit Man Sentenced to 3 Years for Role in Smash-and-Grab Robbery of Stamford Jewelry Store

Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that BRANDON PAUL QUAINTON, 23, of Detroit, Michigan, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Victor A. Bolden in Bridgeport to 36 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for his role in a smash-and-grab robbery of a Stamford jewelry store in November 2014.

According to court documents and statements made in court, on November 26, 2014, Dajuhn Griffin, stole a Stamford resident’s SUV and then drove with QUAINTON, Richard Mathew Bailey and Brian Moore to the Stamford Town Center Mall during regular business hours. At the mall, QUAINTON stayed in the car while Griffin, Bailey and Moore, armed with hammers, entered Sidney Thomas Jewelers. The three then used hammers to smash open a jewelry display case and removed more than $250,000 worth of Rolex watches. They then fled with security guards in pursuit. Bailey was caught and apprehended inside the mall while fleeing, but QUAINTON, Griffin and Moore eluded capture at that time.

After the robbery, Stamford Police found the stolen SUV running in the mall’s parking garage.

The investigation revealed that QUAINTON and Moore organized the robbery and solicited others to participate in it.

QUAINTON was arrested in Detroit on November 30, 2015. On July 21, 2016, he pleaded guilty to one count of interfering with commerce by robbery.

Bailey, Griffin and Moore, also from Detroit, pleaded guilty to the same charge. On November 23, 2015, Moore was sentenced to 48 months of imprisonment; on January 28, 2016, Griffin was sentenced to 51 months of imprisonment and, on September 6, 2016, Bailey was sentenced to 24 months of imprisonment.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Stamford Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amy C. Brown and Gabriel J. Vidoni.