Hochul, Queens DA: A legal first as retail theft ring suspects face charges in NYC

Queens prosecutors and state officials on Tuesday announced the arrests of five people in connection with an alleged $2 million retail theft ring operating online, in New York City and in the Dominican Republic — a landmark bust because of the first-ever use of a new law.

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz and Gov. Kathy Hochul announced the charges under what they dubbed "Operation Fashionably Fencing," a joint law enforcement effort they said put a stop to the alleged designer goods theft and fencing ring that targeted retailers including Macy’s, Ulta Beauty and Sephora.

In about half the cases, the alleged theft ring stole from retail warehouses where items "literally fell off the back of a truck," Katz said.

The district attorney said the goods then were taken back to a warehouse in Fresh Meadows, Queens, where they were listed for sale or shipped in plastic barrel drums to be sold overseas.

The investigation, led by New York State Police, Homeland Security Investigations New York and Queens prosecutors, in the past month recovered about 50,000 items worth more than $1 million, according to authorities.

Prosecutors identified those charged in the theft ring as: Kew Gardens Hills married couple Christopher Guzman, 35, and Yvelisse Guzman Batista, 29; along with her mother, Rosa Rodriguez Santana, 59; Johanny Almonte Reyes, 33, of Fresh Meadows; and Tiffany Leon Fuentes, 27, of Ozone Park.

The husband, wife and mother, along with Reyes, all face multiple felony charges which include criminal possession of stolen property and conspiracy, along with the misdemeanor charge of fostering the sale of stolen goods — the first time the charge has been filed in New York since it became law earlier this month.

Manhattan attorney Vincent Scala, who is representing all but Fuentes, said his clients were arrested Friday and pleaded not guilty to the charges Saturday in a Queens court. They were released with electronic monitors and ordered to surrender their passports, according to the attorney.

Scala said they denied the charges, but he couldn't comment further before reviewing the evidence.

Fuentes faces multiple counts of criminal possession of stolen property and grand larceny along with a conspiracy charge. Court records show she also pleaded not guilty. Her Queens attorney, Jameson Dunne, declined to comment Tuesday. 

All five defendants face 81⁄3 to 25 years in prison if convicted of the top charge against them, according to prosecutors.

Officials said the alleged theft ring used ledgers to account for stolen items, merchandise later listed online through websites like Facebook and Instagram for resale. The stolen goods included designer handbags, clothes and cosmetics. Authorities also recovered plastic parts used to assemble ghost guns during the bust, Katz said.

Hochul said the operation was part of more than $40 million in state funding that assigned 100 state troopers to investigating and stopping organized retail theft.

Retailers' costs "are high enough," Hochul said Tuesday as authorities displayed merchandise they said was recovered during the investigation.

"We do not want to put them at a disadvantage and make them lose so much money every single year," she added.

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.