Crime & Safety
Retail Theft Crime Ring Operated For Twenty Years Out Of Manhattan Apartment: Police
New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman says he has a major announcement on crime coming on Wednesday.
FINANCIAL DISTRICT, NY — Twelve people have been indicted for their alleged involvement in a retail theft crime ring that stole ink cartridges and electronics and then resold the stolen goods, according to an indictment unsealed on Wednesday. (For more New York City news, sign up for Patch's news alerts here.)
New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman announced the indictments while singling out Richard Rimbaugh as the alleged mastermind of the operation, the prosecutor said a press conference in the Financial District on Wednesday. Rimbaugh, an alleged 'ink cartridge kingpin,' is accused of reselling stolen electronics out of his Manhattan apartment, which prosecutors say was the home base of a highly organized crime ring.
According to Schneiderman's office, the enterprise worked like this: Crews of thieves would steal cartridges and electronics from stores like Staples, Office Depot and BestBuy. Rimbaugh, who authorities say has been running this operation for 20 years, would direct these crews and resell the stolen goods on Amazon and eBay.
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Authorities uncovered the long-running operation through a 10-month joint investigation by Schneiderman's office and state police, dubbed "Operation Sticky Fingers." During the investigation, authorities seized more than 5,300 stolen goods from Rimbaugh and more than $7.7 million from all of the defendants. The alleged crime ring was headquartered in New York but operated in 27 other states, according to Schneiderman's office.
The 41-count indictment accuses Rimbaugh and 11 others of enterprise corruption and other crimes.
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Happening soon: We're announcing a massive retail theft ring take down. Watch live here: https://t.co/2F4d3sqrX8
— Eric Schneiderman (@AGSchneiderman) March 15, 2017
This post has been updated with additional information.
Lead image via Patch.
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