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NEW JERSEY – Four men have been charged with allegedly running a car theft and home invasion ring across South Jersey over several months, the New Jersey Attorney General’s office announced Tuesday.
What we know:
Tyree Payton and Jeremiah Lugo, both of Clementon, New Jersey, Israel Ortiz of Sewell, New Jersey, and Sakie Smith of Philadelphia were charged with home invasion burglary, auto theft, receiving stolen motor vehicles, credit card theft and more after a grand jury indictment in late October.Â
According to the AG’s office, the four men stole 11 cars over two months between March and May 2025, and tried to steal four other cars in Burlington County and the surrounding areas.
What they’re saying:
Attorney General Matthew Platkin called it a “brazen spree of car thefts, burglaries, and other crimes,” accusing the four men of “robbing people of their sense of security and safety.”
Timeline:
The four men allegedly targeted unlocked high-end vehicles, sometimes with keys left inside. The Attorney General’s Office highlighted three cases that happened over the span of a week.
On April 20, Ortiz, Payton and Lugo allegedly stole a Mercedes from Ventnor City, New Jersey, that was left unlocked with the keys inside. Philadelphia Police found the car hours later near the Philadelphia International Airport. Days later, on April 23, Payton and Ortiz are charged with stealing an Alfa Romeo from a home in Medford, New Jersey, and illegally using credit cards that were left inside. Another car was stolen on April 27, this one out of a driveway in Moorestown, New Jersey. According to the AG’s office, Payton, Ortiz and Smith tried to steal the car, but ran off when the homeowner came outside and eventually came back and finished the job.
What we don’t know:
It’s not clear when the men are expected to be in court.
The Source: Information in this story is from a press release from the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.