D.A. Bragg, NYPD & BIC: Eight Indicted For Impersonating Shipping Carriers In Multi-State Retail Theft Ring

Defendants Allegedly Impersonated Shipping Carriers; Stole $4 Million in Goods, Including Lamb, Cheese, and Cigarettes

Pictured: Items Recovered by New Jersey State Police

Read the Indictment and Statement of Facts

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., New York City Police Department Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch, and Commissioner & Chair of the NYC Business Integrity Commission Asim Rehman today announced the indictment of eight individuals for conspiring to impersonate shipping carriers in a wide-ranging retail theft ring throughout the northeast. The defendants allegedly used fraudulently obtained shipment information of real shipping carriers and brokers, impersonated the legitimate companies, and stole nearly $5 million in goods from logistics sites in Pennsylvania, Virginia and New Jersey. The stolen goods were then diverted to New York City for sale on the black market. The defendants allegedly interacted with other criminal syndicates, who conducted phishing scams to hack and steal the shipment information. There is reason to believe that there are other incidents of this alleged conduct, and the investigation remains ongoing.

The defendants, MURODULLO KHASANOV, NODIR KOBILOV, SHAVKATBEK MAMADJANOV, RAKHMIDDIN ABDULLAEV, ALEKSEY VOROBYEV, NIZOM ISMOILOV, DOSTON MARDOEV, and DILSHOD NABIEV are each charged with one count of Conspiracy in the Fourth Degree and varying counts of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree. Other charges in the indictment include Grand Larceny in the First and Second Degrees and Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the First and Second Degrees. [1]

"We allege these defendants operated a wide-ranging and brazen, multimillion-dollar interstate retail theft conspiracy that impacted businesses and consumers around the country," said District Attorney Bragg. "We believe that many small businesses were harmed by this theft, some of which may not be able to recover from their financial losses. Furthermore, the intersection of sophisticated online hacking and large-scale theft is deeply concerning and will only grow more prevalent, and we are using every tool available to stay ahead of this emerging trend."

"These defendants allegedly ran a highly coordinated theft ring by illegally obtaining shipping information, impersonating legitimate trucking businesses, and using phishing schemes to steal millions of dollars in consumer goods - including everything from meat and cheese to copper and cigarettes," said NYPD Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch. "Their operation exploited small businesses, disrupted supply chains, and pushed stolen goods onto the black market. Thanks to our tireless NYPD investigators and law enforcement partners, this scheme was shut down, and those responsible are being held accountable."

"The Business Integrity Commission is committed to protecting consumers and ensuring that the City's wholesale public markets are free of organized crime and other forms of corruption. Cargo theft threatens our city, compromises public safety, and drives up the cost of everyday goods for everyone," said Asim Rehman, Commissioner & Chair of the NYC Business Integrity Commission. "Interagency collaboration is essential to maintaining a fair and competitive marketplace, safeguarded from criminal activity. Thank you to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office and the NYPD for their partnership and work on this important case."

"From steaks to cheese to cigarettes, these defendants were running a veritable supermarket of stolen goods," said Port Authority Chief Security Officer Greg Ehrie. "A theft ring this sophisticated, one that used hacked data to impersonate shipping companies and intercept cargo, doesn't get dismantled without serious coordination across multiple levels of law enforcement. Our region is a critical link in the national supply chain, and we'll keep protecting its security and integrity for the people, businesses and communities that depend on it."

According to court documents and statements made on the record, the defendants operated the alleged conspiracy between October 2025 and April 2026. In total, the defendants allegedly committed six thefts and stole $165,000 worth of lamb; $432,000 worth of cheese; $295,000 worth of beef; more than $266,000 worth of copper; and more than $3.3 million of cigarettes. The thefts were coordinated and directed by alleged ringleader MURODULLO KHASANOV.

When a manufacturer wants to ship large quantities of goods, they contract with a shipping broker who advertises the job using an online platform. Shipping carriers will then make bids, and the winner gets the final shipment details from the broker.

The defendants allegedly received the winning bids from hacker groups, with whom the defendants coordinated these activities. They would then allegedly lease tractor trucks and affix the name and registration number of the real shipping carrier that was supposed to make the pickup. They would then drive to the logistics center, pick up the goods and coordinate further shipment into and through Manhattan.

In November 2025, NODIR KOBILOV allegedly drove a truck impersonating the carrier Z Mile Inc to pickup frozen lamb from a logistics center in Oldmans Township, New Jersey. He then met MURODULLO KHASANOV, who escorted and supervised the transportation of the stolen goods through Manhattan into the Bronx. The lamb was intended to be delivered to Minnesota and Wyoming.

In December 2025, SHAVKATBEK MAMADJANOV allegedly drove a truck impersonating Altex Logistics Inc, to pick up cheese totaling 25,395 pounds in net weight, including parmesan, pecorino and Manchego, from a logistics center in Elizabeth, New Jersey. The cheese was intended to be delivered to Georgia. In this particular instance, a shipping broker allegedly fell victim to a phishing attack from the hacking syndicate after they received an email they believed was from a trucking carrier they had frequently used. The broker then unknowingly sent the bid information to the hackers, who shared it with MURODULLO KHASANOV. He then coordinated and supervised the theft with SHAVKATBEK MAMADJANOV.

That same month, RAKHMIDDIN ABDULLAEV allegedly drove a truck impersonating Masters Trucking to pick up 39,600 pounds of beef in Darby Township, Pennsylvania. The beef was intended for Aurora, Colorado, but was instead diverted and transported into New York City. Similarly, the broker had unknowingly sent the bid information to a member of the criminal syndicate conducting the hacking, who eventually sent it to MURODULLO KHASANOV. He then coordinated and supervised the theft with RAKHMIDDIN ABDULLAEV.

Pictured: Pictures of messages allegedly sent to KHASANOV

In February 2026, DOSTON MARDOEV allegedly drove a truck impersonating Viking Transport to pick up 43,100 pounds of copper rod from a logistics center in Newark, New Jersey. The stolen cooper was allegedly driven back to the Bronx through Manhattan, before most of it was sold to "Scrap King," in Brooklyn with the assistance of MURODULLO KHASANOV, ALEKSEY VOROBYEV, and NIZOM ISMOILOV.

Pictured: Defendants Allegedly Collecting Payment for Copper

On two separate occasions in March 2026, under the supervision of MURODULLO KHASANOV, DILSHOD NABIEV, NIZOM ISMOILOV and two other individuals allegedly drove trucks impersonating Preston Deliveries, LLC to CJ Logistics America in Colonial Heights, Virginia to pick up over $3.3 million in cigarettes, which were eventually brought to the Bronx through Manhattan. The cigarettes were intended for Tennessee and Florida. The stolen cigarettes were later recovered pursuant to a search warrant executed in the Bronx.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant D.A.'s David Stuart (Chief of the Counter Terrorism Unit) and Tyler Keefe, under the Supervision of Christoper Conroy (Chief of the Rackets Bureau), Judy Salwen (Deputy Chief of the Investigation Division) and Executive Assistant D.A. Jodie Kane (Chief of the Investigation Division). The following members of the D.A.'s Office provided valuable assistance during the investigation: Sr Rackets Investigator Oleg Uruymagov; Lieutenant Ryan Lemon and Deputy Chief Investigator Kevin Yorke; Senior Counter Terrorism Analyst Juanita Garcia (Lead Case Analyst); Trial Preparation Analyst Hayley Schneider; Director of Intelligence and Analysis Ryan Rittenberg; Counter Terrorism Analyst Elena Christenfeld and Senior Counter Terrorism Analyst Tal Porat; and Laurence Hayes, Boris Vestfrid and Marko Papic of the High Technology Analysis Unit.

D.A. Bragg thanked Lieutenant David Rosiak, Detectives Jeremy Natal and Joseph Sans; Inspector George Pietropinto, Assistant Chief Levon Holley and Chief of Detective Joseph Kenny of the NYPD; Commissioner Asim Rehman, Commissioner and Chair of the Business Integrity Commission; Detective Danny Rafael of the Port Authority; Trooper Austin Burritt and Detective Grigoriy Shperkin of the New Jersey State Police; Detective Stephen Milosh of the Vineland Police Department; and Sr. Crime Intelligence Analyst Ralph Pepe of CargoNet.

D.A. Bragg also thanked the FBI New York Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force; FBI Philadelphia Organized Crime & Cyber Crime Teams; NYPD 60th & 61st Precinct Field Intelligence Teams; and the Bronx District Attorney's Office.

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[1] The charge contained in the indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. All factual recitations are derived from documents filed in court and statements made on the record in court.