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Feds: NY man enlisted thieves, sold comic book loot on eBay
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Started by Designer Toast,

46 posts in this topic

Designer Toast

Designer Toast

Posted
Posted

Don't know if this made here or not. Just saw it in the GPA Newsletter. I hope they tear this slinking ball of dirt up. :sumo:

 

Feds: New York man enlisted thieves, sold comic book loot on eBay

 

By Associated Press

Thursday, November 4, 2010

 

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A western New York businessman enlisted thieves and sold on eBay a huge assortment of their stolen merchandise, including vintage comic books believed taken from a collector who was roughed up and later died of a heart attack, authorities said Wednesday.

 

Rico Vendetti, 41, owner of a tavern and a restaurant in Rochester, was charged this week with racketeering and transporting stolen goods across state lines. The items ranged from razor blades and over-the-counter drugs to power tools and GPS devices with an estimated retail value surpassing $1 million.

 

"He gave these various people lists of things he was willing to buy and they went out and stole them almost on order," said Tony Bruce, an assistant U.S. attorney in Buffalo.

 

The FBI began investigating Vendetti after he was among six people charged with burglary in a July 5 break-in at the home of Homer Marciniak, 77, who lived alone in small-town Medina, midway between Rochester and Buffalo.

 

Medina police say thugs punched Marciniak in the face and tied him up before dawn, then made off with more than 400 comic books valued at $40,000 to $100,000 that he’d been collecting since boyhood. After getting stitches at a hospital, Marciniak died of a heart attack that afternoon.

 

In federal court Tuesday, Vendetti was ordered held until a bail hearing Friday. His lawyer, Joseph Damelio, did not return repeated calls for comment.

 

Since mid-October, authorities in Orleans County have charged Vendetti and five other Rochester residents, including two men picked up Friday in Miami, with first-degree burglary, county District Attorney Joseph Cardone said.

 

The federal charges reopened the possibility that Marciniak’s body might be exhumed to determine whether his heart attack presented itself during the break-in. "If we are able to lodge more serious charges, it’s certainly something we’re open to doing," Cardone said. Authorities initially said the men would not face murder charges.

 

Medina’s police chief, Jose Avila, said Marciniak told him at the hospital that he’d visited shops in Rochester to find out how much his comic books were worth.

 

"He kept them in good condition," Avila said. "They’re all vintage, from early 1940s right up to ’60s and ’70s. They were worth a lot of money but, to Homer, they were worth a lot more. They were his pride and joy. We believe that he looked into selling but he just couldn’t part with them."

 

Federal officials said Vendetti has long enlisted people willing to rip off consumer goods from grocery stores, pharmacies, cars and homes in return for payoffs, including a promised $3,000 to steal Marciniak’s comics. One operator alone estimated that, over the last six years, he sold goods to Vendetti worth $600,000 to $700,000, Bruce said.

 

Three comic books listed for sale on Vendetti’s website matched those on an itemized list kept by Marciniak, one of them a rare 1948 edition featuring the Human Torch, a superhero of the Marvel Comics universe. "You can infer they were the same comic books," Bruce said.

 

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synch

synch

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Posted
It has been discussed before but it's worth bringing up again...

 

About eight years ago I bought a handful of books from this guy on ebay. All were overgraded and had been damaged due to poor packing. Managed to get a refund, though...

 

I'd be wondering now where those books came from

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goldust40

goldust40

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Posted
It has been discussed before but it's worth bringing up again...

 

About eight years ago I bought a handful of books from this guy on ebay. All were overgraded and had been damaged due to poor packing. Managed to get a refund, though...

 

I'd be wondering now where those books came from

 

Yep, got me thinking, obviously. All of them were returned, however.

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the blob

the blob

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kindah makes me worry about having my real return address on ebay shipments, letting people know where the treasure trove is hidden...

 

 

however, they will be sorely disappointed to find 20,000+ dollar and two dollar box books to lug down three flights of stairs.

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Beau

Beau

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Posted
This has been posted before.

 

And the fact that it has been discussed previously has been mentioned in a post prior to yours, in this very thread.

 

It has been discussed before but it's worth bringing up again...

 

It's like rain on your wedding day. :P

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Not*Sure*

Not*Sure*

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I was always leery about really good deals people would take on primo collections..once I was really concerned that I had bought a purloined collection to the extent I called everyone on my local dealer list to make sure no shop had been robbed..I even called local police to ask if anyone had reported books being stolen..

 

Some people thought it was ridiculous for me to do that but it was wearing on my heart that the "sweet deal" for key books may have been stolen books from some poor collector but I never found out anything other than the seller had no idea what the books were really worth and instead of taking me up on my suggestion of finding a larger dealer who had deeper pockets..he took my cash on hand (not much less than $200) for around 7grand in books.

 

But I do know a lot of thieves work from a "list" and have a group that will go out and steal for you "on demand". I was approached once by a lady I worked with in an office who knew I had just gotten a new apartment. She offered me a catalog from a furniture store and told me to circle what I wanted and she could arrange for me to get an entire house furnished including electronics for $800 cash or $1000 if I wanted to make two payments. I was weirded out a bit intrigued at how they would steal large items like couches and bedroom sets..but not interested in buying "hot stuff"

 

Girls in the office would often take up lists of items like cosmetics and resell them for a fraction of retail prices..I really don't need lipstick so bad I need to steal it or have it stolen for me..

 

It is a shame though I see a lot of old folks get scammed out of their collectibles..and could totally see an unscrupulous person taking advantage of them..One couple I know was paying a lady to Ebay for them..if an item sold for less than $8 they had to pay HER and got nothing because she charged them for every miniscule thing involved with Ebay(printer ink for each page printed,typing fee per page,gas for post office,tape,USPS priorty boxes,time,pens,just every iota of anything she could charge for)..she threw a fit at me when I said .."geesh Ralph..I'll ebay your junk for free..here let me type you up some listings.."

 

She was just as bad as stealing from them..but at least she didn't rough them up and give them a heart attack..that is just awful..

 

greedy greedy people..to that extent it is just evil..I can't imagine wanting to hurt anyone for a comic book..even an expensive one..of course I don't understand people who hurt people to steal money either..just doesn't make sense..

 

 

"

 

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Not*Sure*

Not*Sure*

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I know right..I would think that "you take your victim as you find them" would apply.

Isn't the rule usually that if you say mug a little old lady in the street and she happens to have a heart condition and even though she gives up her purse without a fight and you don't have a gun the fright causes her to go into cardiac arrest YOU are still the cause of her death..because you took the risk when the criminal act was commited that the fallout may be the person you robbed may have heart problems or be frail etc.

 

Just because the old man didn't have the heart attack while the robbery was in progress certainly doesn't mean the stress of the robbery did not cause his demise..If he had been robbed and then two weeks later stepped in front of a bus that would be different but from all I have read the gentleman passed away just after being interviewed by the police after the incident.

 

I think that would totally be on the perps as the cause of his stress and resulting heart attack..shameful they will get a slap on the wrist..and probably laugh about it later..seriously I have no use for those sorts of people and wish them nothing good..

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mrwoogieman

mrwoogieman

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Update on the thieving scumbags:

 

 

 

 

U.S. Attorney’s Office

June 05, 2015

 

Western District of New York

(716) 843-5700

 

 

 

 

 

BUFFALO, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Terry Stewart, 35, of Stillwater, NY, who was convicted of engaging in a racketeering conspiracy, was sentenced to 55 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Richard J Arcara. The defendant was also ordered to pay $671,183.25 in restitution to retail chains.

 

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony M. Bruce, who handled the case, Stewart was part of an organized shoplifting ring that stole hundreds of thousands of dollars in merchandise, including breast pumps, whitening strips, cross stitch and needlepoint kits, electric toothbrushes, thumb drives, pet supplements, razors, and tool sets from big box stores such as Walmart, Sears, Home Depot, JoAnn Fabrics, Tops and Wegmans. The merchandise was then sold to co-defendant Rico Vendetti for 25¢ on the dollar. The merchandise was then sold by Vendetti on eBay for about half of its retail value, primarily to out-of-state customers. The defendant alone supplied Vendetti with about $700,000 in stolen merchandise over a period of several years.

 

Rico Vendetti was arrested along with Arlene Combs, Albert Parsons, and Donald Griffin, all of Rochester, NY, an charged with the felony murder in the death of 78-year old Homer Marciniak during the course of a home invasion robbery at Marciniak’s home in Medina, NY in July, 2010. Vendetti has been convicted for his role in the murder and is awaiting sentencing.

Also charged in the case are Brandon Meade and Dayon. Meade has been convicted. Charges are pending against defendants Shaver, Combs, Parsons, and Griffin. The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

 

The sentencing is the result of an investigation on the part of Special Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Craig Hanesworth, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Scott Hess, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn, the Medina Police Department, under the direction of Chief Jose Avila and Officers from the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Ciminelli.

 

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mrwoogieman

mrwoogieman

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And another:

 

 

 

Rochester man pleads guilty to crime that led to death of Medina man

 

Press Release, US Attorney William Hochul Posted 1 October 2015

BUFFALO – U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Donald R. Griffin, 37, of Rochester pleaded guilty to committing a murder in aid of a racketeering enterprise, before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara. The charge carries a penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine.

 

 

Sentencing is scheduled for Feb. 3, 2016 at 1 p.m. before Judge Arcara.

 

 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony M. Bruce, who is handling the case, stated that Griffin was one of three individuals who broke into the Medina home of 78-year-old Homer Marciniak in the early morning hours of July 5, 2010.

 

 

 

The intent of the burglary was to steal Marciniak’s valuable collection of comic books with an estimated value of $30,000. During the course of the burglary, Marciniak woke up and stumbled into the hallway where he encountered Griffin and the others.

 

 

 

The defendant struck Marciniak in the face causing lacerations. After Griffin and the others left, Marciniak was transported by ambulance to Medina Memorial Hospital where his lacerations were sutured. However, following his release from the hospital’s emergency room, Marciniak went into cardiac arrest and died a short time later.

 

Medical evidence that the government was prepared to offer at trial demonstrated that the blow Griffin struck, as well as the emotional trauma caused by the burglary, directly contributed to Marciniak’s cardiac arrest and resulting death.

 

Rico Vendetti, the former owner of the East Side Gold and Audio Pawn Shop and Al’s Green Tavern on North Goodman Street in Rochester, engineered the burglary. He was convicted of Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization (RICO) Conspiracy and is awaiting sentencing.

 

Defendants Terry Stewart and Brandon Meade were also convicted in connection with this case.

 

The two other individuals involved in the burglary were Juan Javier, a juvenile at the time of the burglary who was convicted of robbery in Orleans County Court, and Albert Parsons who will be tried in federal court beginning on Dec. 8, 2015 along with co-defendants Arlene Combs and Dayon Shaver.

 

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

 

The plea is the result of an investigation on the part of Special Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New York State Police, under the direction of Major Craig Hanesworth, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department, under the direction of Sheriff Scott Hess, the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn, the Medina Police Department, under the direction of Chief Jose Avila and officers from the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Ciminelli.

 

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