A Pennsylvania woman was arrested in connection to a motor vehicle theft group affecting New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.
The 38-year-old was arrested in Warren County, N.J., and then extradited to Connecticut on Jan. 15.
According to the Old Saybrook Police Department, she was charged with four counts of larceny of a motor vehicle in the first degree and six counts of conspiracy to commit larceny in the first degree. These charges stem from incidents that occurred in Glastonbury, Coventry, Ridgefield, Old Saybrook, and Fairfield.
An investigation determined that members of the group posed as customers at car dealerships and swapped or cloned the key fobs to vehicles which were stolen the following day.
The investigation revealed this pattern of thefts dated back to March 2024. Seven of these motor vehicle thefts or attempted thefts occurred throughout Connecticut between March 2024 to May 2025. Between all three states, investigators identified 20 motor vehicles stolen or targeted by the group, with a total value of over $2.4 million.
The two vehicles stolen from an Old Saybrook car dealership were a 2024 GMC Sierra Denali and a 2025 GMC Sierra Denali. These pickups were recovered in Houston, Texas and San Marcos, Texas and are currently being held pending civil litigation, according to Old Saybrook Police Chief William Onofrio.
The woman appeared in Middletown Superior Court on Tuesday, according to the Connecticut Judicial Branch website.
Onofrio said in an email to NBC Connecticut that the case is still under investigation to identify other members of the theft group.
