NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Two men were arrested in the Diamond District on Tuesday after federal investigators connected them to a fencing operation that sold stolen luxury items from across the country, including goods from at least one professional athlete.
The execution of a search warrant at a pawn shop located at 75 West 47th St. led to the arrest of Dimitriy Nezhinskiy and Juan Villar, the Justice Department said. Law enforcement seized large quantities of suspected stolen property, including dozens of high-end watches and jewelry, cash and cannabis.
A simultaneous search of storage units belonging to Nezhinskiy in New Jersey yielded another cache of stolen property, including high-end handbags, wine, sports memorabilia, jewelry and artwork. Power tools commonly used in burglaries and for opening safes were also found.
Nezhinskiy, 43, and Juan Villar, 48, are facing an indictment charging them with conspiracy to receive stolen property, according to the Justice Department.
“The defendants' alleged actions incentivized highly organized South American Theft Groups to continue their meticulous looting scheme against a myriad of affluent residences and businesses across the country," FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Dennehy said.
The charges allege that between 2020 and 2025, Nezhinskiy and Villar conspired to buy property stolen over state lines and transported to New York. The men served as “fences” for burglary crews based out of South America who traveled around the United States to commit robberies, court filings state.
These crews typically targeted wealthier neighborhoods or jewelry vendors, and the ring is connected to the robbery of athlete Joe Burrow, of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Phone records and video surveillance link Nezhinskiy to at least two members of a four-person crew believed to be behind the Dec. 9, 2024 Ohio burglary of Burrow, and showed that he was in contact with them less than one week before the burglary.
The Justice Department said that evidence also links Nezhinskiy and Villar to thefts across the country, including those committed by Bryan Leandro Herrera Maldonado, a burglar who committed at least 16 residential burglaries between 2019 and 2020.
During the course of the investigation, an undercover detective conducted seven sales of “stolen property” to Nezhinskiy, Villar or them both at their Diamond District business, receiving cash for purported stolen goods.
“My Office will continue to pursue organized groups who engage, enable, or encourage the pillaging of residential homes and businesses that have a corrosive effect on the sense of security in our communities,” U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York John Durham said.
Nezhinskiy and Villar will be arraigned on Wednesday.