Kian Barber, 37, of Newark, andDavid Manning, 30, of East Orange led the operation that stole and trafficked 18 high-end cars valued at over $1 million, Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. Figures from January 2022 showed that carjackings have tripled from the same month in 2021. At William Proetta Criminal Law our attorneys have handled thousands criminal charges and serious motor vehicle offenses for our clients throughout New Jersey include Newark. The city is often associated with the mafia, with Charles Lucky Luciano perhaps the most famous New York gangster ever. Nearly 750,000 vehicles (or 228 per 100,000 residents) are stolen in the U.S. each year, representing a loss of about $6 billion annually. "They like the chase, especially if it's dangerous. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. We build and sell around the world. Indeed, it was in Detroit where the term carjacking was born. In addition, State Police analysis reveals a strong nexus between cases involving receiving stolen propertyincluding stolen vehiclesand shootings. Thomas DeCastro, commander of the task force, said that car theft in Newark and the surrounding area is down by 20 percent to 35 percent this year compared with 1992. The Newark Municipal Court is located at 31 Green Street in Newark, New Jersey 07102. In 2021, the city saw 281 reported carjackings, up from 105 in 2018. Perhaps ironically, considering the citys history with the automotive industry, carjacking is a problem in the city. However, there are still high levels of property crime and violent crime. Detroit has, in the past, held the title for the highest number of carjackings in the United States. Although not one of the biggest cities in the states, Bakersfield nears the top of the list for motor vehicle thefts per capita, averaging roughly 726 thefts per 100k residents. At the state level, Alaska and New Mexico have historically reported the highest motor vehicle theft rates, at 495 and 488 car thefts per 100,000 people, respectively, over the past three years. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. Newark is also connected to the Holland Tunnel and Lower Manhattan by the Pulaski Skyway. The cars had a fair market value of $149,000. NEWARK The two leaders of an auto theft ring targeting luxury vehicles have been sentenced to a combined 16 years in state prison. It was barely after noon when the Essex-Union Auto Theft Task Force spotted its first stolen car of the day. There have also been reports of hijacking rings in the city, which look to benefit financially from selling stolen vehicles. In Newark, which still remains the stolen car capital of New Jersey, motor vehicle theft through the first nine months of 2015 through September dropped by more than 16 percent over the same period last year, to 1,511 stolen cars and trucks. Some victims can also sustain serious injuries when their car is taken by force. In many cases, the carjacker has no intention of keeping the vehicle theyre stealing. More often than not, the NICB said the theft of a new car now is the result of someone leaving the keys in the vehicle, or leaving it running unattended. Bakersfield, California, is the top metro area for car thefts, with the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood metro in Colorado in second place. Anyone can read what you share. NEWARK The two leaders of an auto theft ring targeting luxury vehicles have been sentenced to a combined 16 years in state prison. To address the growing number of motor vehicle thefts, the New Jersey State Police established the Auto Theft Task Force. Lieut. The Task Force is currently in the process of expanding to include new assets, with the potential to expand further if circumstances warrant. Two glum young joy riders looked out. "We do not chase stolen cars.". 3.7K. For awhile, this seemingly quiet New Mexican town lead the nation in automobile thefts per capita. In several cases, authorities said, customers placed orders for specific vehicles, including a Toyota CR-V with leather seats. Ted Sherman | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com, the international car smuggling operation, Ring that stole cars worth $6 million and shipped them to Africa is busted in Newark, 6 from Hudson County arrested, 2 still at large as international auto theft operation shut down; 19 charged, Union County officials arrest 10 in connection with luxury car theft ring. NEWARK--Jihad Brown was charged with four carjackings that went down in four days. "Cars you once could start with a screwdriver you can't take anymore.". 321 Comments. According to the criminal complaints filed Wednesday in Newark, the ring was made up of several layers, including members of street gangs who would steal the cars sometimes at gunpoint; drivers or "runners" responsible for transporting the stolen vehicles, often moving them several times to avoid detection by police; those who would broker them, and others who would change vehicle identification numbers to allow export out of Port Elizabeth, Port Newark and Bayonne. They arrived in Nigeria in October. Albuquerque is another hotbed of vehicle thievery, with a tally of just under 700 thefts per 100k residents. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. One step is to invest in a vehicle that offers protection from attack. Kantete was charged with three counts of transporting stolen vehicles and one count of conspiracy to transport stolen vehicles. New Jersey state flag was officially adopted on January 15, 1896; The official song of the state of . We break down what gap insurance is, if its worth it, and more - simply and with plenty of examples. Car thefts vary significantly on a geographic level. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. No one was hit and four Newark youths were arrested. According to the Attorney General's Office, six people including Barber and Manning have been sentenced for their role in the fencing ring. The city is trying to persuade teens to steer away from crime. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. In recent months, the Auto Theft Task Force and additional federal, state, county, and local law enforcement partners have been collaborating on efforts to reduce auto theft and violent crime across New Jersey. On the evening of Aug. 25, 2011, the informant was at the warehouse when he got a call from Kantete. Last year, 14,320 vehicles were reported stolen in New Jersey, a 22-percent increase compared to 2020, which also saw a rise over the previous year, according to State Police data. A 17-year-old, Howard Caesar, was shot and wounded as he fled from a stolen car in what prosecutors said was an apparent police ambush. "Now they rob four to five cars from a valet at a time.". Only the 150 largest U.S. cities were included in the analysis. As a result, residents have taken to using some extreme defensive measures, including a flamethrower mounted underneath the vehicle. The number of cars being stolen in New Jersey, meanwhile, has been on a sharp decline because of anti-theft devices that make it all but impossible to steal a new car without an electronically linked key--making keys and electronic fobs increasingly the primary focus of car thieves these days. Photo Credit: Alamy Stock Photo. Youd better make sure your auto insurance is up to date if you live in or near Albuquerque, New Mexico. The City is served by the Newark International Airport and several major highways including the New Jersey Turnpike I-95, Interstate 280, Interstate 78, the Garden State Parkway, U.S. Route 1/9, U.S. Route 22, and Route 21. That disturbing fact played out last weekend when a 15-year-old boy was caught in a stolen car May 9 and on May 8, three juveniles - a 16-year-old boy, a 15-year-old girl and a 13-year-old boy -- were caught in a stolen car. Did you get your Tesla Model 3 bulletproofed? After all, the city was home to one of the worlds most famous gangsters Al Capone. New York City is another city that is strongly associated with crime. Officials said the group searched wealthy neighborhoods looking for high-end cars unlocked with the key fob in the glove box. In 2021, the city saw 800 recorded cases, four times the number from 2015. Would you like to know more than the salesperson? So have nearby cities like Irvington, East Orange and Elizabeth, which all ranked in the top 10 in car theft in 1990, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, an industry group. In 2021, the Auto Theft Task Force conducted 33 vehicle theft investigations, made 75 arrests, seized five firearms, and recovered 130 stolen vehicles valued at approximately $5,690,000. For additional court information regarding your court date please contact the court at 973-733-6520. CoPilot searches every car at every dealer, every day, and ranks them based on what matters to you. Violent crime rate: 1,117 per 100k people. 8 among the top 10 states, with 4,140 vehicles taken with the key inside. Wichita, Kansas. To determine the car theft capitals of the U.S., researchers at CoPilot analyzed the last three years of crime data from the FBI. Approximately 90 stolen vehicles worth more than $4 million taken by the ring were later recovered. The car most often stolen in New Jersey last year was a well-traveled Honda Accord from the 1990s that lost its new car smell decades ago. Despite the high profile cases, Honig does not expect to see the problem go away, with the continued demand for stolen high-end vehicles in West Africa, where major auto retailers refuse to sell cars, far from satiated. To combat theft, remember common sense steps such as rolling up your windows, locking your car and parking in well-lit areas. In January of this year, municipalities including Monroe, Edison, Franklin Township (Somerset County), Ocean Township, Oceanport, and Hamilton Township (Mercer County) reported motor vehicle thefts with subsequent burglaries into victims residences. On average, these 25 cities had 827 car thefts per 100,000 people, several times higher than the national rate of 228 per 100,000, and averaged nearly 4,000 cars stolen annually. "They have gotten better at stealing a car when it's running.". 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