Six arrested in multi-year retail theft scheme involving Greece pawn shop

Rochester, N.Y.— Six people were arrested in a yearslong organized booster scheme that was uncovered by investigators.

Prosecutors say a serial larcenist had "engaged in an unusually large number of transactions" at New York Gold Diamond and Pawn on Stone Road in Greece, prompting an investigation by a multi-agency task force.

Shabon Bates, Amanda Reeves, Chanc Lewis and Chad Lewis Jr. allegedly stole thousands of in-box items from several local retail stores and sold them to Dominic Sprague, James Civiletti and others at the pawn shop, which would then flip the items on eBay for a significant profit.

The theft scheme, which took place from December 2021 to October 2024, generated more than $2.4 million in revenue for the pawn shop, according to the criminal complaint.

"These type of crimes, these retail theft crimes, are happening throughout the country, and they are seen in all types of communities," U.S. Attorney Trini Ross explained during a press conference Thursday. "I'm here today to tell the public and would be perpetrators of these crimes, we are not going to sit back and allow these type of crimes to continue."

All six suspects are facing several charges, including wire fraud, transportation of stolen goods in interstate commerce and money laundering.