A Las Vegas jeweler pleaded guilty in federal court on July 29 to receiving and selling stolen goods totaling $196,500.

Nabil Sakkab, 39, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge James C. Mahan to two counts of receipt and sale of stolen goods. Sakkab faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each count. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 28.

According to a press release from the District of Nevada’s U.S. Attorney Daniel G. Bogden, Sakkab knowingly purchased stolen jewelry from about Sept. 20, 2011, to Feb. 3, 2012, from an individual at a Las Vegas jewelry store the defendant previously co-owned, including Rolex and Tag Heuer watches stolen in other states and transported to Las Vegas prior to the purchase. 

Sakkab resold the stolen jewelry at the store and privately to third parties for personal gain, the release stated. The parties agreed that the loss to the victims of the thefts amounts to $196,500.

“According to a December 2012 report prepared for Congress, organized retail crime exposes the United States to economic, public health, and domestic security dangers,” said Bogden in a statement.  “Estimates of the losses to retailers range from $15 billion to $37 billion annually. Additionally, consumers end up paying for the losses in the form of higher prices on goods, and states lose the tax revenue that would otherwise be generated from the sale of these goods by legitimate retailers.”

JCK