ROCHESTER, N.Y. – U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced that James Civiletti, 34, and Chad Lewis Jr., 20, both from Greece, NY, were sentenced to 14 months in prison for their roles in a retail theft ring. Civiletti was convicted of conspiracy to transport stolen goods in interstate commerce, while Lewis Jr. was convicted of 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 Amanda Reeves and Shabon Banks in a retail theft scheme involving the New York Gold Diamond Pawn Shop. The shop is owned by Dominic Sprague and managed by Civiletti.
The group stole new-in-box items from store shelves regularly and sold them to the pawn shop at a fraction of their retail value. The pawn shop then resold the items on eBay for higher prices, resulting in significant profits. The shop purchased nearly 38,000 stolen items on over 670 occasions for $290,000, causing losses of approximately $1,160,000 to retailers.
Reeves, Banks, and Sprague have also been convicted and are awaiting sentencing.
The investigation was conducted by Homeland Security Investigations led by Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan; the Internal Revenue Service under Special Agent-in-Charge Harry Chavis; the Greece Police Department led by Chief Michael Wood; and the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office under Sheriff Todd Baxter.
