LI prosecutors bust major car-theft gang that spent $40K with stolen credit cards but rip absurdity of state bail laws that could free most

Long Island authorities just took down a gang behind a major car- and credit-card-theft ring — but said the “absurdity” of the state’s lax bail laws will likely dump most of the accused criminals right back on the street.A whopping 250-count indictment unsealed Tuesday charged 13 members of the “CC Boyz” crew with breaking into more than 50 cars including a Maserati, stealing 15 of them and taking 75 credit cards that they used to buy more than $40,000 in ill-gotten goods at Target, Walmart and Apple stores, said Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney.But Tierney said prosecutors could have a hard time keeping most of the thieving suspects behind bars.“I want to note that despite the serious nature of these offenses, none of these offenses standing by themselves are bail-eligible,” Tierney told reporters.“That means our prosecutors would not be able to request bail” unless a suspect has a criminal history that warrants it, although even then, the decision would be up to the judge.“But standing alone, these cases are not bail eligible,” he said.

“And I think that, once again, shows the absurdity of our bail laws and [that] our legislators have seen fit to allow organized criminals and gang members to engage in this repetitive, organized criminal activity, and we can’t even seek bail on that.” The Empire State’s criminal justice reforms, passed in 2019, bar judges from setting bail on misdemeanors and most non-violent felonies, a move critics blame for upticks in crime.The CC gang, helmed by three ringleaders, was the subject of a 15-month joint investigation by various law-enforcement agencies, officials said Tuesday.Tierney said the illicit crew used online real-estate sites such as Zillow and realtor.com to pick neighborhoods they felt were most likely to have unlocked cars, while also frequenting parking lots at assisted-living facilities, golf courses, gyms and hotels.They would break into vehicles and swipe at least some...