A key member of an international burglary crew that targeted jewelry stores and banks has been sentenced to 27 months in prison, according to court records.
Elvis Cirikovic, aka “Gorilla”, 37, of Queens, New York, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero on January 10, 2020.
Judge Marrero also ordered Cirikovic to pay $2.5 million in restitution.
Updated: August 15, 2019
The jailed leader of an international burglary crew who has allegedly been committing burglaries for over 20 years has asked a federal judge to move him to a hospital so he can receive mental health treatment.
In October 2018, Damir Pejcinovic, 44, of Manhattan, was indicted on multiple charges in connection with a string of burglaries and attempted burglaries in the U.S. and Europe between 2006 and 2017.
On October 24, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announced that four New York City men had been arrested and charged in connection with a string of burglaries and attempted burglaries in the U.S. and Europe between 2006 and 2017.
The defendants are Damir Pejcinovic, aka “Damian”, aka “Coco”, 44, of Manhattan, Gzimi Bojkovic, aka “Jimmy”, 36, of Staten Island, Adrian Fiseku, 35, of Staten Island, and Elvis Cirikovic, aka “Gorilla”, 35 of Queens.
According to federal prosecutors, the men were part of an international burglary crew that mainly targeted jewelry stores and banks.
Anthony Mascuzzio, 38, of Brooklyn, New York, was sentenced to 7 years in prison on Friday for his role in two 2016 bank burglaries.
Mascuzzio was part of a crew that burglarized an HSBC bank in Brooklyn and a Maspeth Federal Savings Bank in Queens. They used oxygen and acetylene torches to cut through the roofs and into the vaults of both banks. According to prosecutors, the total amount of the loss is almost $21 million.
The crew also included Michael Mazzara, Charles Kerrigan, and Christopher Kerrigan.
On Friday, April 13, 2018, Michael Mazzara, 45, of Brooklyn, New York, appeared before U.S. District Judge Katherine Forrest for sentencing in Manhattan federal court.
Mazzara had pled guilty to two counts of bank theft before Judge Forrest exactly four months earlier on December 13. The charges related to the theft of cash and property from an HSBC Bank branch in Brooklyn in April 2016, and a Maspeth Federal Savings Bank branch in Queens in May 2016. The deposits of both banks were insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
According to court records, Mazzara had signed a plea agreement with the government where he admitted he was the was the leader of the HSBC heist, and agreed to return items stolen from the banks and to make restitution to the victims. Both parties also agreed to a sentencing range of 97 to 121 months in prison.