ROCHESTER, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced that James Civiletti, 34, from Greece, NY, was sentenced to 14 months in prison for conspiracy to transport stolen goods in interstate commerce. Chief U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford delivered the sentence. Co-defendant Chad Lewis Jr., 20, also from Greece, NY, received a similar sentence of 14 months for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle P. Rossi stated that between December 2021 and October 17, 2024, Lewis Jr. conspired with a group of serial larcenists including Amanda Reeves and Shabon Banks in a retail theft scheme involving the New York Gold Diamond Pawn Shop. The pawn shop is owned by Dominic Sprague and managed by Civiletti.
The larcenists stole new-in-box items regularly from store shelves and sold them to the pawn shop at reduced prices. The pawn shop then resold these items on eBay at higher prices for profit. In total, the pawn shop purchased 37,936 stolen items from Lewis Jr., Banks, and Reeves on over 670 occasions for $290,000 while causing actual losses of approximately $1,160,000 to victim-retailers.
Reeves, Banks, and Sprague have been convicted as well and are awaiting sentencing.
These sentences result from an investigation conducted by Homeland Security Investigations under Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan; the Internal Revenue Service under Special Agent-in-Charge Harry Chavis; the Greece Police Department under Chief Michael Wood; and the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office under Sheriff Todd Baxter.
