The Family Who Steals Together….

8 jailed in armored car, rail yard heists-New Orleans area BNSF. 4 suspects belong to West Bank family.

(New Orleans Times-Picayune, 2/12/05) Members of a suspected criminal ring, including four members of a West Bank family, were arrested Friday for allegedly robbing an armored car and burglarizing 39 railroad cars of $50,000 in electronic equipment, the FBI and local law enforcement officials announced. FBI Special Agent John Rook described the suspects as "sophisticated operators" who "all knew one another." They were arrested in a series of coordinated raids across the New Orleans area.

Charged in the armored car robbery were Clint Kiff, 23, of 5211 August St., Marrero; his brother, Nolty Kiff Jr., 24, of 5480 Canal Blvd., New Orleans; their father's brother-in law, Joseph Krummel, 34, who is in state prison on unrelated charges; and Daphne Gilbert, 44, of 312 Deckbar Ave., New Orleans. Authorities say they robbed a Dunbar armored car of an unspecified amount of money in Metairie on Dec. 31, 2001. Rook declined to provide details of the heist.

The Kiff brothers' father, Nolty Kiff Sr., of 38 Trey Lane, Belle Chasse, was among four others booked in the rail car burglaries. Also charged were Tommy Fletcher, 24, who lived with Nolty Kiff Jr.; Ricky Fitzgerald, 24, of 4937 Debra Ann Lane, Barataria; and James Rodrigue Jr., 24, of 824 Ave. A, Marrero. The suspects face up to 20 years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 under the Hobbs Act, a federal racketeering law that targets crimes involving interstate commerce, the FBI said.

They are accused of burglarizing 39 container cars at a rail yard in Bridge City during the 2002 Thanksgiving weekend. Televisions, VCRs, DVD players and cordless phones worth an estimated $50,000 were taken from the rail cars, which were owned by the BNSF Railway. Those suspects were charged with two counts each of theft of interstate shipment. They face up to 10 years in prison and fines of $250,000 on each count, the FBI said.

The suspects allegedly drove along a ditch to get to the edge of the rail yard, and then gained access by cutting through a chain-link fence in a wooded area uncovered by BNSF security cameras, according to an investigator who asked not to be identified. The investigator said bolt-cutters were used to open the 39 containers, part of a shipment from California due to be unloaded onto trucks for delivery in Mississippi and Louisiana. Valuable electronic items were removed from some containers, while others with less valuable contents were passed over. The stolen goods were apparently taken by hand to a vehicle or vehicles about 500 feet away. All eight suspects were in federal custody in Orleans Parish on Friday.

Rook said the investigation is continuing and more charges or arrests are possible. He also asked anyone who might have purchased stolen goods from the suspects to come forward to assist in the investigation. Anyone with additional information in the case is asked to call (504) 816-3000.

In addition to the FBI, agencies involved in Friday's arrests included the New Orleans Police Department, the Westwego Police Department, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office, the Plaquemines Sheriff's Office and Acting U.S. Attorney Jim Letten.

Posted: 02/13/05