By: Richard L. Smith
A year-long investigation has led to criminal charges against 63 people accused of participating in a sophisticated auto theft trafficking enterprise that allegedly stole more than 90 luxury vehicles valued at over $8 million and shipped many of them to buyers in West Africa.
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport, the Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor, and the New Jersey State Police announced the sweeping case, alleging the organization operated throughout New Jersey and New York between June 2025 and June 2026.
According to investigators, the criminal enterprise targeted high-end luxury vehicles, including Range Rovers, Porsches, and BMWs.
Theft crews allegedly broke into homes to steal key fobs before taking the vehicles and transporting them to brokers who arranged their sale to buyers, many of whom intended to export the vehicles to Ghana and Nigeria.
Authorities said all 63 defendants have been charged with first-degree racketeering for their alleged participation in the organization.
They also face a variety of second- and third-degree charges, including participation in an auto theft trafficking network, motor vehicle theft, receiving stolen property, and residential burglary.
Investigators allege the operation was overseen by Fatim Wingate, 26, Brian J. Peppers, 35, Adamu Alhassan, 28, and Standford Oduro, 55, all of Newark.
Prosecutors allege Oduro operated a shipping yard in Irvington where stolen vehicles were stored, loaded into shipping containers, and prepared for shipment overseas.
Authorities said several stolen vehicles recovered from shipping containers at ports in New Jersey and New York were traced back to the Irvington shipping yard.
The investigation also alleges that Wingate and Peppers managed separate theft crews responsible for residential burglaries, commercial burglaries, vehicle thefts, and other crimes, including an armed robbery in Newark.
Prosecutors said the crews transported stolen vehicles to locations in Irvington and the Bronx, where they were sold to buyers who also allegedly financed additional criminal activity.
State officials said the investigation identified more than 90 stolen vehicles with a combined value exceeding $8 million.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant Bureau Chief Evgeniya Sitnikova of the Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor.
The investigation remains ongoing, and all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.