Federal prison ordered for large-scale auto break-in ring

Car burglars don’t typically face federal prosecution.

But a Lee’s Summit man who conspired with others to steal electronics and other items from scores of vehicles and then sold them on eBay will now have five years in federal prison to ponder that sometimes they do.

Nathaniel Dixon, 37, was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Kansas City, where he previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He was also ordered to pay more than $104,000 in restitution to his victims and forfeit an additional $125,000 to the government.

Federal prosecutors said that Dixon’s co-conspirators broke into at least 144 vehicles across the Kansas City area. Dixon would then buy the stolen items and post them for sale on eBay.

The total loss to victims was estimated at $476,000.

This story was originally published December 30, 2014 at 12:32 PM with the headline "Federal prison ordered for large-scale auto break-in ring."