Long Island theft ring "CC Boyz" ripped off more than 50 high-end cars, police say
A multi-agency law enforcement team has taken down a large car theft ring on Long Island, authorities say.
More than a dozen people were charged Tuesday in more than 50 high-end car break-ins across Suffolk County over the last two years.
13 members of the "CC Boyz" indicted
The indictment ties 52 car thefts and break-ins to 13 alleged members of a ring that called itself "CC Boyz" -- CC standing for "car checking," which is what they are accused of doing in high-end neighborhoods, looking for unlocked doors, mirrors not folded in, wallets inside, or, in some cases, the whole car.
"They would use real estate apps such as Zillow and Realtor to find specific neighborhoods," Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said. "They would steal the cards in the middle of the night and immediately go to the store to use those cards before the victims knew what was going on."
Tierney said they targeted parking lots where cars are often left unlocked, like at country clubs and even assisted living facilities, and later would proudly post their cash on social media.
Police said the cars weren't sold, but instead were used as transportation to buy gift cards and money orders.
"Today's arrests are proof of this fact: you can't outsmart law enforcement, forever, no matter how hard you try. One the biggest mistakes they made was to use postal money orders," U.S. Postal Inspector Brendan Donahue said.
Police said all of the 52 cars were actually recovered, but they were first used to commit other crimes.
"I think the message is if you're going to engage in this organized repetitive criminal activity, you're going to be held responsible," Tierney said.
"We have victims whose lives are upended by this"
The pattern was solved by the Suffolk County Police Department, which said it shared images with other departments that ended up recognizing the alleged ring leader, Sean Mullen of Freeport, who was found with 20 key fobs, 122 drivers licenses, 45 stolen credit cards, 15 Social Security cards.
"We have victims whose lives are upended by this. There credit scores are destroyed. Their cars are taken. Days missed at work, so it's a crime we take very seriously," Commissioner Kevin Catalina said. "When they were using the credit card their faces were partially covered, but not completely. We were able to get a couple of people identified and that started the case rolling."
Tina Brown of Bayport said she woke up one day in 2023 to find her car gone. A fob had been accidentally left inside.
"In the morning, a car pulled up right at the base of the driveway and a guy came around, got into the car, and just took off with it," Brown said.
Dozens of similar cases have plagued Suffolk County ever since.
Only a few of the accused were held on bail, the DA says
Of the people charged, only four were held on bail because they are accused of committing non-bail-eligible crimes, which prompted another plea from DA Tierney.
"Our legislators to allow organize criminal and gang member to engage repetitive organized criminal activity, we can't even seek bail on them," Tierney said.
Officials say the arrests also serve as yet another reminder that leaving your car unlocked or with a fob inside is an invitation to thieves.
