By Justin Muszynski, The Bristol Press
February 17, 2022
An Illinois woman charged in a scheme involving multiple individuals and the fraudulent purchase of new vehicles from car dealerships once again appears headed for a trial.
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Danielle Benn, 29, originally indicated in August that she wanted a trial and, at that time, her matter was added to the trial list.
The case was later put back on the pre-trial docket – where many matters are resolved in a plea deal – before being marked down once again for a trial following an appearance in New Britain Superior Court this week.
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Benn, who is free on a promise to appear, is due back in court on April 12. Judicial records indicate she has opted for a trial before a jury of her peers, as opposed to a bench trial where a judge would decide her fate.
The 29-year-old has pleaded not guilty to two counts each of first-degree larceny and conspiracy to commit first-degree larceny.
The Illinois resident has been charged in connection with an elaborate operation to buy new cars using someone else’s identity. During a previous hearing, Benn’s attorney, Christopher Llinas, said the extent of his client’s involvement was being found in possession of a stolen vehicle while investigators were looking for Felix Aryee, 36, who has also been charged.
Aryee - who is free on $350,000 bond - allegedly conspired with two other individuals to use the identities of two New Jersey men in October 2018, in Bristol, to purchase a Kia Stinger GT1 and a Kia Stinger GT2, which are collectively valued at over $80,000, according to the arrest warrant. He also has been charged by Berlin police with larceny.
The same scheme has been done or attempted in multiple other area towns, according to court papers.
According to Llinas, Benn met Aryee in 2015. She moved to Connecticut in 2017 and lived in an apartment being rented by him, but he did not reside there.
Benn believed Aryee was an insurance broker and, by 2018, the two were engaged to be married, according to Llinas. It wasn’t until later that Benn learned Aryee was “living a double life” and was involved in a “large, complex, elaborate theft,” Llinas said.
Aryee has pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to commit first-degree identity theft.
Justin Muszynski can be reached at 860-973-1809 or jmuszynski@bristolpress.com.
