Sacramento, California - The final defendant in a shoplifting ring that stole over $2.5 million in retail goods and resold them on eBay was sentenced today to three years in prison, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.
Jason Nathaniel Reed, 36, of Aspen, Colorado, previously of Vacaville, California, is the seventh defendant sentenced to prison in this case. Jason Schroeder, 36, of Sacramento, was previously sentenced to seven years in prison, Kirk Arthell Sanderson, 37, of Walnut Creek, was previously sentenced to four years in prison; John Judah Young, 34, of Sacramento, was sentence to two and a half years in prison; and David Reed, 29, of Vacaville, was sentenced to one year in prison. Two others, Andrea Lynn Turner, 34, of Roseville, and Joshua Roy Payne, 30, of Vacaville, were each sentenced to two months in prison.
On June 16, 2015, Schroeder pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud. According to the plea agreement, in October 2012, a sporting goods company with retail stores in Sacramento called the FBI stating that an eBay account was listing items for sale it suspected were stolen. Follow-up investigation revealed that the account was controlled by co-defendant Schroeder using co-defendant Young’s name, and since 2009, it listed more than 17,000 items for sale, including sporting goods, household items, recreational equipment and pet care products. Most of the items were listed as new or with tags. Virtually all of the items sold on the account were stolen by Reed or others, and were sold at a discount to buyers across the country.
According to the plea agreement, Jason Reed and Jason Schroeder took a road trip across the country to Miami to attend the Super Bowl. On that trip, Schroeder and Reed were stealing items on a daily basis, listing the items for sale on eBay in the evenings, and shipping the items out via FedEx.
Wiretaps and surveillance also revealed the specific roles of other members of the conspiracy. According to court documents, David Reed assisted Schroeder with the packaging and shipment of the stolen merchandise. Sanderson assisted in moving items away from Schroeder’s residence when he learned of the federal investigation. Turner and Payne provided false statements to federal agents upon being interviewed regarding their assistance to Schroeder.
This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant United States Attorneys Jared C. Dolan and Jeremey J. Kelley are prosecuting the case.
