Astoria Man Arrested In $6M Heist At JFK Airport: DA

ASTORIA, QUEENS — A fifth person has been arrested in connection with a $6 million heist last year at JFK Airport that involved the theft of thousands of luxury goods, prosecutors announced Thursday.

Astoria resident Oscar Asencio faces charges of conspiracy and criminal possession of stolen property after prosecutors said he helped stash the stolen merchandise in a defunct beauty salon in Jamaica and sold off nearly half the items, from Chanel handbags to Gucci sneakers.

Asencio was arraigned Tuesday after months on the run from authorities, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said.

Patch has reached out to Asencio's defense lawyer, Don Savatta, for comment and will update this story with any response.

The scheme started unfolding in January 2020, when three former airport workers used "insider knowledge" and forged documents to intercept shipments of designer merchandise, prosecutors said.

The crew managed to steal more than $800,000 in Prada clothes, bags and accessories that month, according to prosecutors.

They struck again in May, this time nabbing over $5.3 million worth of Chanel handbags and jewelry and Gucci clothing and accessories.

They funneled the merchandise to the shuttered Candi World Beauty Bar at Guy R. Brewer Boulevard and 147th Avenue, where Asencio helped sell all but $2.5 million worth of the loot, according to prosecutors.

Later that year, authorities seized mountains of boxes of stolen designer goods inside the empty building, including more than a thousand Chanel and Prada accessories.

Four people are already in custody in connection with the heists, including two former truckers who worked at JFK, 33-year-old David Lacarriere and 43-year-old Gary McArthur.