Alleged 'porch pirates' targeted FedEx packages with insider information: Prosecutors

Prosecutors in New York said they have dismantled a "sophisticated 'porch pirate' criminal organization" that allegedly stole FedEx packages containing electronic devices.

Fourteen people have been indicted for enterprise corruption and other charges in connection with the alleged theft ring, the Suffolk County Prosecutor's Office announced on Monday.

The two-year investigation uncovered 48 alleged pattern acts of theft targeting FedEx packages containing electronics and cellphones from October 2023 to February, the office said.

The enterprise is accused of "hacking" into the delivery system to set up cellphone deliveries under fake names and using random residences as a "convenient drop-off point," unbeknownst to those who lived there, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond Tierney.

The alleged porch pirates included a network of "runners" who retrieved the packages, while other defendants were allegedly involved in the wholesale redistribution of the stolen devices, prosecutors said.In one instance, a defendant is accused of forcibly taking a package from an elderly woman whose residence was being used for the delivery, Tierney said.

In total, 50 felony charges have been filed in connection with the case, including enterprise corruption, grand larceny, identity theft, robbery and conspiracy, according to the Suffolk County Prosecutor's Office.

"For two years, this alleged porch pirate ring plagued our community and built a criminal enterprise on the backs of Suffolk families and businesses," Tierney said in a statement. "These indictments demonstrate that we will track down and hold accountable those who commit crimes against Suffolk County residents, regardless of how extensive their operation."

One of the defendants allegedly ran the criminal enterprise from two locations in the Bronx and employed the network of runners who were given "insider FedEx tracking information, including recipient names, addresses, device types, and tracking numbers from shipments from Verizon and AT&T destined for Suffolk County," the prosecutor's office said.

Prosecutors released footage of several of the incidents, one in which two men could be seen intercepting a FedEx delivery driver and then getting into an awaiting vehicle. In other incidents, packages were captured being taken from residences shortly after being delivered.

Prosecutors said the stolen packages were then sold to wholesalers who redistributed them domestically and internationally.

As part of the investigation, law enforcement recovered an International Mobile Equipment Identity scanner and a bill counter from one of the defendant's homes, according to prosecutors. The scanner is used for inventory purposes by businesses and mobile carriers, but "can also be used to clone devices and identity theft if it falls into the wrong hands," the district attorney's office said.

In a Bronx stash house, law enforcement recovered more than 200 new cellphones, other electronic devices and more than $100,000 in cash, according to prosecutors.

FedEx said it fully cooperated with law enforcement throughout the investigation and will "continue to work with law enforcement to pursue bad actors who attempt to misuse customer information."

"With bad actors growing increasingly sophisticated, the shipping industry has been proactively working with law enforcement to address the rise of porch piracy," the company said in a statement on Monday. "We constantly adapt our processes and use innovative technologies to protect drivers and packages."