Rochester Pawn Shop Owner Pleads Guilty To Selling More Than A million Dollars Worth Of Stolen Goods

CONTACT: Barbara Burns
PHONE: (716) 843-5817
FAX #: (716) 551-3051

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - U.S. Attorney James P. Kennedy, Jr. announced today that Thomas Nary, 39, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford to transportation of stolen goods in interstate commerce. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.   
 
Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan K. McGuire, who is handling the case, stated that the defendant 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 that he knew were engaged in unlawful shoplifting from Rochester area retail stores. 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. The defendant 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. The defendant sold and shipped more than $1,500,000 worth of stolen goods to buyers.

The defendant was charged in November 2019 along with co-defendants Eric Finnefrock and Ralph Swain, who were both previously convicted and are awaiting sentencing.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations Division, under the direction of Thomas Fattorusso, Acting Special Agent-in-Charge, New York Field Office; the Rochester Police Department, under the direction of Chief Cynthia Herriott-Sullivan; the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, under the direction of Sheriff Todd Baxter; the Greece Police Department, under the direction of Chief Andrew P. Forsythe; and the Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, under the direction of District Attorney Sandra Doorley. 

Sentencing will be scheduled at a later date. 

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