Rochester pawn shop owner going to prison for selling millions of dollars worth of stolen goods

 

Date: December 2, 2022

Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov

Rochester, NY — U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Thomas Nary, of Rochester, NY, who was convicted of transportation of stolen goods in interstate commerce, was sentenced to serve 46 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford. Nary was also ordered to pay a $3,128,363 money judgment for selling and shipping over $6,000,000 worth of stolen goods.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan K. McGuire, who handled the case, stated that Nary owned and operated Rochester Pawn & Gold (RPG), a pawnshop located on Dewey Avenue in Rochester. Between January 2015 and November 2019, Nary purchased stolen goods and merchandise from individuals, known as boosters, that he knew were engaged in unlawful shoplifting from Rochester area retail stores. Many of the boosters were addicted to drugs and used the money the money they received from Nary to buy drugs. This resulted in a number of overdoses of the individuals who sold to Nary.  

The stolen items were taken from various stores, including Lowes, Home Depot, Target, Walmart, and Wegmans, and then sold to RPG for a fraction of the true retail value. Nary then listed the stolen goods for sale on eBay and Amazon, including to buyers located outside of New York State. The goods were advertised as “New” or “New-In-Box” and priced below retail value, although the price was well in excess of what Nary paid those that stole the items. Nary sold and shipped more than $6,000,000 worth of stolen goods to buyers.

Co-defendants Eric Finnefrock and Ralph Swain, who were both previously convicted and are awaiting sentencing.

The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Thomas Fattorusso, Special Agent-in-Charge, New York Field Office; the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief David Smith; the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Todd Baxter; and the Greece Police Department, under the direction of Chief Michael Wood. Additional assistance was provided by the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office.