ID Thieves From Long Island, Queens Had Hidden Vehicle 'Trap,' Bergen Prosecutor Says

Fourteen credit cards stolen from different victims were found in a secret compartment of a vehicle owned by a Queens man who was arrested with an accomplice from Long Island during a stop in Leonia, authorities said.

Jose Pichardo (left), Robert Diaz
Photo Credit: *MUGSHOTS*

Jerry DeMarco

04/02/2022 5:57 p.m.

Bergen County Prosecutor Mark Musella said detectives from his Narcotic Task Force also found cocaine in the “sophisticated electronically operated” stash compartment after stopping Jose Pichardo, 36, of Corona and Robert Diaz, 37, of Copiague on Thursday, March 31.

The investigators charged both men with credit card theft, ID theft and minor drug possession and sent them to the Bergen County Jail, the prosecutor said.

Diaz and Pichardo spent barely 24 hours in the Bergen County Jail before a judge ordered their release on Friday, with conditions, pending further court action.

Diaz, of Great Neck Road, already had a history, records show: Federal authorities charged him and five other people in an income tax scheme nearly 10 years ago that defrauded the government out of more than $2.5 million.

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