Mastermind behind New Jersey stolen truck ring busted, officials say

🚔 State police arrested a man accused of leading a New Jersey vehicle theft ring.

🚛 Investigators linked the crew to stolen commercial trucks with fake titles and altered VINs.

💳 Detectives also found credit card skimmers, cloned cards, and burglary tools.

The brains behind a vehicle theft ring in New Jersey and his two co-conspirators have been arrested, according to state officials.

Yosiel Ruiz-Linares, 33, of Elizabeth was arrested after state police searched his living space in the basement of a Trenton home on May 8, according to the Attorney General's Office.

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State police said they found credit card skimmers, 98 blank credit cards, four possibly stolen credit cards, and $10,000 in cash. They also reported finding fraudulent New Jersey MVC titles, Vehicle Identification Number programming and re-identification equipment, burglar's tools, and motor vehicle master keys.

The Cuban national is charged with being a leader of an auto theft trafficking network that targeted personal and commercial vehicles. He's also charged with conspiracy, trafficking in stolen property, receiving stolen property, receiving stolen motor vehicles, VIN tampering, forgery/falsification, and motor vehicle title offenses.

Authorities link stolen commercial trucks to New Jersey theft ring

Authorities said they arrested two accomplices. Angel M. Amendanosiguencia, 42, of Trenton is charged with receiving stolen vehicles. Yadier Evora-Martinez, 31, of Orlando, Florida is charged with moving stolen vehicles, conspiracy, and receiving stolen property.

According to investigators, Ruiz-Linares worked with his co-conspirators to move stolen vehicles between commercial lots, storage locations, and residences. They had meetings and coordinated vehicle transfers, officials said.

Several stolen commercial vehicles in police databases have been linked to the Ruiz-Linares theft ring, officials said. They include truck cabs for a 2024 Freightliner and 2025 Western Star Roll-Off, plus a 2025 International Wrecker tow truck, and a 2025 International Box Truck. Investigators said the vehicles had fraudulent titles, altered registrations, and signs of VIN tampering.

Suspect previously tied to fuel theft and fraud investigations

Ruiz-Linares was previously arrested on Feb. 19, 2023, according to Essex County Jail records. On that same day, New York State Police said that Ruiz-Linares and a Florida man were caught using stolen credit card numbers and cloned credit cards to steal $3,800 worth of diesel fuel.

And earlier this year in New Jersey, Ruiz-Linares was charged with shoplifting and theft in two separate incidents, according to court records. While he has used a private attorney in the past, no attorney information for this case was available at the time of publishing.

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