Felony Lane Gang Operation Dismantled
Prosecutors in DA Charme Allen’s White Collar Unit dismantled an entire cell of the Felony Lane Gang that came from Florida and was operating in Knox County and surrounding jurisdictions. Members of this cell included Lindsay Alex Rosenfeldt, 29, Demetrius Jamal Gunn, 28, Jarvis Letrey Lewis, 32, Weldon Jermaine Glinton, 33, and Joshua Chai Spicy, 43. In total, the members of the gang were convicted of fifteen felonies for Identity Theft, Theft over $2500, and Burglary of a Vehicle.
In several plea hearings before Judge Steve Sword, Assistant District Attorneys Willie Santana and Bill Bright explained to the Court that on February 24, 2017, officers with the Clinton Police Department stopped a car containing Lewis, Spicy, and Glinton. During the course of the traffic stop, officers found identification cards, credit/debit cards, and/or checks belonging to eighteen individuals. Ten of those individuals were recent victims of vehicle burglaries reported in Knox County. As the Clinton Police Department and Anderson County Sheriff’s Office continued their investigation in Anderson County, they contacted Knox County Sheriff’s Office Detectives Brad Cox and Shawn Hensley and ADAs Santana and Bright to pursue the case in Knox County. Ultimately, the investigation uncovered that the co-defendants worked together to break into vehicles and steal IDs, credit cards, checks, etc. from white females. The group specifically targeted white females going into daycares, parks, and gyms, as the victims were most likely to leave their purses in their vehicles at these locations. Rosenfeldt then wore a wig in order to resemble the victim and cashed checks from the victims at various bank locations in Knox County, all while using the bank drive-through. The Felony Lane Gang refers to the type of scam used, not a street gang, because the”felony lane” is a bank drive-through lane that is the farthest away from the bank teller that the identity thief uses in the hopes that the teller will not question the identity of the perpetrator.
“The greatest thing you can do to protect yourself is lock your car doors and do not leave valuables in your car, especially in plain view,” said DA Charme Allen.”You may think you’re safe because you will only be gone a few minutes, but that is exactly what this group targets.”
If you have any questions, please contact Sean McDermott at 865-215-2515 or Sean.McDermott@knoxcounty.org. For more information about the District Attorney’s Office, visit our website at dag.knoxcountytn.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.