Man found guilty in cell phone heist

An Annapolis man was convicted yesterday and another is awaiting trial in connection with a 2006 scheme to steal a tractor-trailer full of at least 4,500 cell phones worth $585,000.

Walter Lee Green, 49, pleaded guilty in federal court to receipt and possession of stolen cell phones. He now faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine when he is sentenced Feb. 13.

His co-defendant, Lawrence Michael Branch Jr., 44, of Annapolis is scheduled to stand trial on similar charges Dec. 22, federal prosecutors said.

Federal agents linked Green and Mr. Branch to the theft scheme shortly after the Aug. 29, 2006, heist. Green confessed to helping swipe 19 pallets of Cingular phones from the HBI Priority Freight terminal in Glen Burnie after agents caught him with some of the goods. At the same time, he gave up Mr. Branch to police, prosecutors said.

According to the plea agreement, someone driving a white semi stole a trailer of cell phones from Glen Burnie and drove them to Annapolis. Cingular, which was already concerned about a rash of recent cargo thefts, had included a global-positioning system with the cell phones and turned it on when the truck was reported stolen. The FBI located the stolen trailer in Annapolis, along with 19 shrink-wrapped pallets of cell phones inside, prosecutors said. Agents staked outthe trailer and, at about 10 p.m. Aug. 30, saw a blue semi hook up to it and tow it away. The trailer was taken to a warehouse in Baltimore city, where it was unloaded and then taken to Jessup.

Agents recovered the empty trailer in Jessup and followed the GPS locator back to Annapolis. There, they found Green in the white semi.

Green confessed Aug. 31 he knew about the stolen shipment of cell phones. He showed officers five stolen phones he had in the semi, took police to the Baltimore City warehouse and said Mr. Branch helped with the heist.

Green said he had been at the warehouse the night before. He said they planned to store the cell phones there until they could decide how to sell them.

Agents recovered 13 of the 19 stolen pallets, allowing them to return about 4,500 cell phones to Cingular, prosecutors said. The total value of the shipment was $585,000.