Man Picks Up Girlfriend From Jail In Stolen Car: Police

GWINNETT COUNTY, GA — One traffic stop led to the arrest of two people and the recovery of four stolen vehicles Tuesday.

An officer assigned to the Gwinnett County Police Department Motorcycle Unit initiated a traffic stop on a driver accused of speeding. After making contact with the driver, the officer discovered that the license plate displayed on the back of the Jeep was stolen.

The driver told the officer that she purchased the vehicle through an ad on a buy/sell/trade website. After the driver was arrested and placed in the backseat of a patrol car, the officers found that the VIN plate displayed in the windshield was fraudulent. The true VIN was found. The vehicle was reported stolen from Thrifty Rental in Tennessee when someone rented the vehicle with fraudulent information.

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The driver, Akhria T. Cooper, 24, of Duluth, was eventually taken to the Gwinnett County Jail. Investigators with the Motor Vehicle Theft Unit made contact with her boyfriend, Derrick L. Taylor-Canty, 26, of Duluth. He was told that his girlfriend was at the jail.

Taylor-Canty traveled to the jail to bond out Cooper. While in the parking lot, he called the investigator to inquire about his girlfriend. Suspecting that Taylor-Canty could also be in a stolen vehicle, the investigators confronted Taylor-Canty in the parking lot. The 2019 Infiniti that he was driving also had a fraudulent VIN. The true VIN was found, and investigators learned that the vehicle was reported stolen from Enterprise Rental in Kentucky. He was placed under arrest.

When officers searched Taylor-Canty, they found two other sets of keys on him. The officers went to the home of Akhria at 726 Paces Common Drive in Duluth. Once there, they found a 2013 Lexus with the license plate from the stolen Infiniti. The Lexus also had a fraudulent VIN and was reported stolen through the Atlanta Police Department. The license plate to the stolen Jeep (from the initial traffic stop) was found in the trunk of the Lexus.

The investigators learned that Taylor-Canty had sold a 2008 Acura MDX to a buyer in Milton, GA, using the title to a different vehicle. The Acura was reported stolen from Interstate 85 and Steve Reynolds Boulevard in August 2018. The owner had been in a traffic accident and left the vehicle parked along the interstate. The vehicle was recovered on Wednesday, January 23.

Cooper was charged with: theft by receiving stolen property (felony), theft by receiving stolen property (misdemeanor), altered serial numbers, speeding, driving without license, acquiring license plate to conceal identity, improper window tint and no insurance.

Taylor-Canty was charged with: theft by receiving stolen property (felony) – two counts, theft by receiving stolen property (misdemeanor), altered serial numbers – two counts, theft by deception and operating a chop shop.

Though this case resulted in the arrests of two people, the investigation is still active. There is a possibility that these two may have victimized others. If anyone purchased a vehicle from either Cooper or Taylor-Canty, call Investigator O’Brien at 770-513-5285.

Photos courtesy Gwinnett County Police Department