Pennsylvania man sentenced for role in burglary of 55 UPS warehouses following ICE investigation
CAMDEN, N.J. – The last of four Pennsylvania men who admitted their roles in a conspiracy to burglarize approximately 55 United Parcel Service warehouses was sentenced, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Jersey, announced Feb. 13.
Aboudramane Karamoko, 21, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was sentenced to 39 months’ imprisonment followed by three years’ supervised release in Camden federal court Feb. 13. Three other defendants, all from Philadelphia, were previously sentenced. His accomplices Sekou Fofanah, 20, was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment followed by three years’ supervised release; Shamaire Brown, 19, was sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment followed by three years’ supervised release; and Quamaire Brown, 19, was sentenced to 33 months’ imprisonment followed by three years’ supervised release.
“Our incredible partnership with multiple agencies nationwide garnered sentencings that hold these thieves accountable for the over $1.6 million worth of merchandise they robbed from consumers,” said ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations Newark Special Agent in Charge Ricky J. Patel. “We use every investigative tool available to safeguard the interstate and international commerce of the United States as well as our nation’s overall supply chain.”
As part of their sentences, all four defendants were ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $1,600,157.
According to the investigation, at least as early as January 2021 through at least as recently as April 2023, Fofanah, Brown, Brown, Karamoko, and others conspired to commit burglaries of UPS facilities throughout the United States, including warehouses in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and Rhode Island, among other States. The defendants gained access to the UPS facilities by breaking the windows of the loading bay doors or prying open loading bay doors. Once inside, they sought parcels marked with “lithium-ion battery” warnings, which indicated that the packages contained high-value electronic devices, such as a cell phones.
Agencies nationwide supported ICE HSI Newark in the investigation leading to the sentencings including HSI offices in Philadelphia, State College, Rhode Island. Supporting New Jersey law enforcement agencies include the New Jersey State Police and the South Brunswick Police Department. Pennsylvania law enforcement agencies who assisted include the Pennsylvania State Police, the Centre County District Attorney’s Office, the State College Police Department, the Philadelphia Police Department and the Taylor Borough Police Department. New York agencies include the New York State Police, the Clarkstown Police Department and the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office. Rhode Island’s Warwick Police Department, Michigan’s Livonia Police Department, the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Ohio’s Summit County Prosecutor’s Office and Connecticut’s Brookfield Police Department also assisted in the investigation.
Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE.gov)
