SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – A Columbia, Missouri woman is the final defendant to plead guilty in a massive, multimillion-dollar catalytic converter theft ring.
Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri said Danielle Ice, 34, appeared in federal court Tuesday and admitted to stealing catalytic converters and transporting the stolen car parts across state lines to resell them.
Danielle Ice told the court she and her husband, Leslie, stole at least 50 catalytic converters and sold them to Evan Marshall, who paid them approximately $20,000 for the stolen goods.
According to court documents, Danielle Ice is the last of seven defendants to plead guilty in this case. In addition to the Ices and Marshall, other co-defendants include Cody Ryder, Enx Khoshaba, Eric Kaltenbach, and Camren Joseph Davis.
The Ices began stealing catalytic converters for Marshall in October 2020 and continued doing so through at least March 2021. Prosecutors said they would photograph an intended victim’s catalytic converter and send the photo to Marshall via text message. Marshall would determine if the particular converter was valuable and, if so, instructed the Ices to steal it.
Marshall provided the couple with a list of vehicles by year, make, and model that had valuable catalytic converters in order to target specific cars.
In January 2021, Marshall gave Danielle Ice approximately $1,500 to post bond for her husband, who was being held for a state criminal case.
Marshall previously admitted to federal authorities that he transported stolen catalytic converters, valued at $1 million or more, across state lines between December 2019 and October 2021. He also admitted to buying tens of thousands of the stolen converters from his co-defendants and other thieves and then reselling the parts for $1 million.
Danielle Ice pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to transport stolen property across state lines.
Under federal statutes, Danielle Ice will face up to five years in federal prison without parole. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the U.S. Probation Office completes a presentence investigation.