| TRENTON
- Attorney General Stuart Rabner and Criminal
Justice Director Gregory A. Paw announced
that two Pennsylvania men have pleaded guilty
for their roles in an auto theft ring responsible
for thefts of more than $3 million worth
of vehicles.
According
to Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Greta Gooden
Brown, Dariusz Grabowski, also known as
Derek Grabowski, 37, Lake Ariel, Pennsylvania,
pleaded guilty today before Superior Court
Judge Scott J. Moynihan in Union County
to a criminal accusation which charged him
with second-degree leader of organized crime,
second-degree conspiracy to commit racketeering
and second-degree racketeering.
In
addition, Grabowski’s brother, Krzysztof
Grabowski, 26, of Lake Ariel, pleaded guilty
to a criminal accusation charging him with
second-degree conspiracy to commit racketeering,
second-degree racketeering and third-degree
alteration of a vehicle identification number.
A
multi-agency investigation into the criminal
network revealed that more than 150 vehicles
with a total value in excess of $3 million
were stolen, re-tagged and sold by Dariusz
Grabowski and other members of the criminal
enterprise he admitted to leading.
“This
is an outstanding example of law enforcement
collaboration to dismantle a major auto
theft ring that was operating across state
lines,” said Attorney General Rabner.
“Our Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor
worked on this multi-jurisdictional investigation
with the New Jersey State Police, the Pennsylvania
State Police, the New York Attorney General’s
Office and the National Insurance Crime
Bureau.”
At
the guilty plea hearing, Dariusz Grabowski
admitted that between March 2003 and November
2005, he was the leader of an organized
enterprise that stole cars, re-tagged them
using counterfeit and salvaged titles, and
sold them, frequently on the Internet through
eBay.
A
re-tagged or re-plated vehicle is a vehicle
which has had its original vehicle identification
number plate removed so that a VIN from
another vehicle, usually a vehicle which
has been damaged in an accident and which
is a salvage vehicle, can be affixed to
the stolen vehicle to disguise that it was
stolen.
Dariusz
Grabowski admitted that he falsely portrayed
himself as a locksmith licensed in New York
to obtain automobile key codes from a company
known as Key Code Express located in Florida.
A key code is a code used in connection
with the manufacture of certain automobile
keys which enables only the key with the
proper code to unlock and start a specific
vehicle.
Fraud Prosecutor Brown noted that Dariusz
Grabowski admitted he falsely obtained more
than 130 key codes from Key Code Express
in Florida, as well as 36 key codes from
the Jameson Code Service and six key codes
from the Key Quest Inc. key service. He
obtained the key codes so that other members
of the enterprise could steal vehicles,
frequently from automobile dealerships,
and so that the stolen vehicles could be
re-tagged and sold on eBay. He admitted
that he was involved in the sale of at least
42 stolen vehicles utilizing eBay.
Krzysztof
Grabowski admitted that, as a member of
this enterprise, he obtained counterfeit
vehicle tags and titles.
Dariusz
Grabowski was previously charged in an indictment
on January 12, 2006, with receiving stolen
property. This indictment pertained to stolen
cars which were located at or around his
residence in Pennsylvania between Oct. 28
and Nov. 2, 2005, when search warrant and
arrest warrants were executed by investigators
from the Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor
involving various members of the enterprise.
That indictment was assigned to Somerset
County and will be disposed of when he is
sentenced.
State
Investigators Jarek Pyrzanowski, Jeffrey
Lorman, Joseph Luccarelli, and Kelly Howard,
Civil Investigator Gary Miller, Analysts
Paula Carter and Barbara Ziolkowski and
Deputy Attorneys General Jacqueline Smith
and Philip J. Mogavero coordinated the investigations.
Mogavero represented the Office of Insurance
Fraud Prosecutor at the guilty plea hearing.
Also assisting in the investigation were
New Jersey State Police Detective Joseph
Salokas and National Insurance Crime Bureau
Agent Donald Cavallo.
Crimes
of the second degree carry sentences of
up to 10 years in state prison and a criminal
fine of up to $150,000, while third-degree
crimes carry a sentence of up to five years
in state prison and a fine of up to $15,000.
The defendants also may face civil insurance
fraud fines.
Prosecutor
Brown noted that some important cases have
started with anonymous tips. People who
are concerned about insurance cheating and
have information about a fraud can report
it anonymously by calling the toll-free
hotline at 1-877-55-FRAUD,
or visiting the Web site at www.NJInsuranceFraud.org
.” State regulations permit that an
award to be paid to an eligible person who
provides information that leads to an arrest,
prosecution and conviction for insurance
fraud.
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