Member of car theft ring sentenced to over 4 years in prison

ROCHESTER, N.Y.- The final defendant in a series of “smash and grab” car robberies was sentenced. Dennis L. Jones, 33, of Fort Lauderdale, FL, was convicted of bank fraud and sentenced to serve four years and nine months in prison.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa M. Marangola, who handled the case, said that between December 2021, and March 2022, Jones and three others people drove up the East Coast from Florida to Rochester stealing purses from unoccupied vehicles in gym parking lots, retail parking lots, hiking trails and residential neighborhoods. The defendants used stolen driver’s licenses to cash stolen checks totaling $55,310 at local banks.

There were over 20 victims were identified in the Rochester Area, as well as several others along the East Coast.

Defendant Liza J. Freiman, 33, of Boston, MA, was sentenced to serve a year in prison; defendant Allen Clark, 34, of Fort Lauderdale, FL, was sentenced to 7 years in prison; and defendant Ja’Cari Robinson, 22, also of Fort Lauderdale, FL, was sentenced to six months in prison.