Two Queens residents allegedly responsible for dealing $2 million in stolen retail goods were busted in a crackdown that Gov. Kathy Hochul and Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz announced Tuesday.
The bust occurred just days before the biggest shopping day of the holiday season, Black Friday — something that officials drove home during the presser at the Queens DA’s office on Nov. 26.
Standing before a large table overflowing with stolen perfume, t-shirts, makeup, and even portions of 3D printed guns, Hochul and Katz stressed that the arrests would help safeguard retailers from theft and protect buyers from potential gouging.
Hochul herself didn’t mince words about criminal elements benefiting from businesses’ financial losses.
“We’ve had enough with criminals preying on our citizens. We are sick and tired of our citizens feeling they’re vulnerable, whether it’s random crimes on the streets or whether it’s the sophisticated organized crime rates — we are coming after you,” Hochul said. “I saw enough videos of people behind the counter being assaulted in brazen attacks, sometimes in broad daylight, and they’re so vulnerable, especially if they are the only person in the store or in a gas station when it happens.”
Prosecutors said husband-and-wife duo Yvelisse Guzman Batista and Cristopher Guzman allegedly operated the sophisticated operation.
The two suspects, both residents of Kew Gardens Hills, allegedly worked alongside accomplices Johanny Almonte Reyes and Rosa Rodriguez Santana in directing a horde of shoplifting crews, also known as boosters, to steal large quantities of merchandise from storefronts.
Batista and Guzman then allegedly sold the hot merchandise from their home, online, and out of a brick-and-mortar store in the Dominican Republic, prosecutors noted.
The duo, authorities said, even allegedly resorted to bribing truck drivers to divert products bound for retailers such as Sephora and Ulta Beauty from manufacturer warehouses directly to locations under their control.
Police cracked down on the illegal business through an operation Katz dubbed “Fashionably Fencing.” Undercover operatives made controlled purchases of merchandise from the suspects after contacting them via social media.
According to the D.A’s office, the undercover gained access to the Guzmans’ basement, which was set up as a retail store with shelves of stolen merchandise.
Upon their arrests, law enforcement agents found more than $1 million in products in Batista’s and Guzman’s possession. They were charged with fostering the sale of stolen goods, the first time this newly adopted crime has been charged in New York.
“This investigation and these arrests are about holding the defendants accountable and are also a great opportunity to warn people to be extremely careful when it comes to their purchases especially approaching the holiday season,” Katz said. “This marks the first time in New York anyone has been charged for the crime of fostering the sale of stolen goods, a new measure passed by the legislature and signed into law by Governor Hochul to stop the sale of stolen goods through both online platforms and brick-and-mortar locations.”
Katz lauded recent laws that Hochul signed that helped police recover $40 million in stolen goods and led to the creation of dedicated Retail Theft Teams within the New York State Police, whose undercover units participated in the investigation leading to this indictment.
“Retail theft not only financially impacts a business, but also presents peril to business owners, retail workers and patrons,” New York State Police Superintendent Steven James said. “State Police remains fully engaged on this issue and will not tolerate the actions of individuals responsible for stealing tens of thousands of dollars in merchandise, victimizing both retailers and the public.”
