30 Vehicles Stolen In 7-County NJ Theft Ring: Prosecutors

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The scheme was simple but effective, prosecutors allege: Steal work vans and pickup trucks in North Jersey, take them to local scrapyards, then strip them for expensive parts, including catalytic converters.

On Monday, state prosecutors announced that six people have been accused of stealing more than 30 vehicles throughout the region.

The suspects have also been linked to stolen license plates, vehicle titles and more than $20,000 worth of stolen tools and equipment, according to a joint statement from the New Jersey State Police and Division of Criminal Justice.

After a month-long investigation dubbed “Operation Cat Burglar,” detectives identified David Wilson, 54, of Bloomfield, and George Milton, 60, and Donald Williams, 64, both of East Orange, as suspects in a ring that stole vehicles in Bergen, Passaic, Essex, Union, Hudson, Morris and Middlesex counties.

Detectives also identified Gary Herring, 42, of Irvington, Jameer Smith, 21, of Newark, and Timothy Pereira, 31, of Guttenberg, as additional suspects in the operation, prosecutors said.

State police worked with several local police departments on the investigation, including Paramus, Morris Township, Warren Township, Bernards Township, River Vale, Montville, Newark, Garfield, Passaic, Union City, Clifton, East Orange, West New York, Elizabeth, Bloomfield, North Bergen, Jersey City, West Orange, Belleville, Nutley, Woodland Park, Paterson, Middletown, Westfield and Guttenberg.

The probe, launched in January, also included the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, the National Insurance Crime Bureau and LoJack, authorities said.

Here’s how the scheme worked, prosecutors alleged:

“Through various investigative means, detectives discovered that the suspects were transporting the stolen vehicles to scrapyards in Jersey City and Newark and using a parking lot in North Bergen to store vehicles. The suspects would remove the catalytic converters and sell the parts for profit or illegally modify the vehicle identification number (VIN) of the vehicles to commit additional crimes.”

On Feb. 19, police executed a search warrant at the residence of Milton and Williams on North Maple Avenue in East Orange. Detectives recovered a stolen vehicle, stolen tools and equipment, 31 vehicle titles, stolen license plates, and 16 motor vehicle VIN plates, which are affixed to every vehicle by the manufacturer.

Milton and Williams were arrested without incident, authorities said.

A short time later, detectives determined that Wilson and Smith were operating a BMW X5 in Union Township. They were located and arrested by the Union Township Police Department after attempting to flee from a motor vehicle stop, prosecutors stated.

Herring was later located and arrested as he exited his residence on 21st Street in Irvington, prosecutors said.

During the week of Feb. 22, detectives executed search warrants at a scrapyard in Jersey City, a parking lot in North Bergen, and Pereira’s residence in Guttenberg. As a result of the searches, detectives recovered more than 15 stolen vehicles, a stolen snowplow and a car transporter trailer with an altered VIN.

On Feb. 25, Pereira turned himself in to detectives and was arrested without incident, prosecutors said.

David Wilson was charged with:

• Receiving stolen property
• Theft
• Burglary
• Fencing
• Criminal mischief
• Conspiracy
• Eluding
• Resisting Arrest
• Aggravated assault
• Possession of CDS
• Obstruction

George Milton was charged with:

• Conspiracy to operate a facility for the sale of stolen automobile parts
• Receiving stolen property
• Theft
• Burglary
• Fencing
• Criminal mischief
• Conspiracy

Donald Williams was charged with:

• Conspiracy to operate a facility for the sale of stolen automobile parts
• Receiving stolen property
• Theft
• Burglary
• Fencing
• Criminal mischief
• Conspiracy

Gary Herring was charged with:

• Conspiracy to operate a facility for the sale of stolen automobile parts
• Receiving stolen property
• Theft
• Burglary
• Fencing
• Criminal mischief
• Conspiracy
• Possession of CDS
• Possession of drug paraphernalia

Jameer Smith was charged with:

• Resisting Arrest
• Possession of CDS
• Obstruction
• Possession of Burglar’s Tools

Timothy Pereira was charged with:

• Receiving stolen property
• Possession of a motor vehicle with altered identification numbers

“Catalytic converters have become a high-value target of thieves due to the soaring prices of the precious metals that are needed for the device to function,” NJ State Police Superintendent Patrick Callahan said.

“The victims of these crimes are not only left with costly repair bills, but may suffer further financial losses through lost work wages or car rental expenses,” Callahan added.

“Given the extreme financial hardship and related difficulties that so many of our residents have experienced over the past 12 months, it was critical that we acted quickly,” Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said.

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com

Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site. Sign up for Patch email newsletters.