New England law enforcement agencies bust ring behind $4 million jewelry theft

Law enforcement agencies from Massachusetts and Rhode Island worked together to take down a burglary ring that stole upward of $4 million in jewelry over nearly a six-year period, Massachusetts State Police officials announced.

At least four Rhode Island men — Jovan Lemon, 29, Paul Lemon, 30, Steven Berdugo, 28, and Paul Miller, 46 — were taken into custody and indicted on charges connected to roughly 43 burglaries and break-ins that occurred across Massachusetts from 2018 to 2024, according to a release from the state police Friday.

"The defendants were directly indicted by a Middlesex Grand Jury on April 18, 2024 for a total of 95 counts of unarmed burglary and breaking and entering a dwelling house in the daytime with intent to commit a felony," the release said.

"The residents of the majority of homes were persons of Indian or South Asian heritage. Investigators believe that they were targeted based on of their ethnicity relying on a belief that their households were more likely to contain precious metals, jewelry and other valuable heirlooms."

Items stolen during the criminal actions included diamonds, gold bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and cash.

"In several instances, the property had been secured in locked safes, weighing up to 400 pounds, which the perpetrators removed from the residence along with the stolen valuables," according to the release.

"The aggregate reported value of the stolen property exceeds $4 million."

Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan declared the defendants were both sophisticated and intentional about choosing their targets with great care.

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"They targeted victims based on their ethnicity and then gathered information about their targets in order to strike when families were not at home," Ryan said. "They were disciplined in concealing their identity, avoiding alarms and minimizing cell phone use before, during and after the breaks and using Wi-Fi jammers."

"Despite these challenges and the complicated nature and breadth of this investigation, law enforcement collaboratively and persistently worked to today begin the process of holding these four defendants accountable."