Tip from Bristol County company leads to charges for pawn shop owner who allegedly bought $378,000 worth of stolen rings

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Attorney General Peter Neronha announced that a Providence pawn shop owner has been charged in Sixth Division District Court in Providence with buying 108 18 karat gold rings valued at $378,000, that he knew to be stolen, following an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General.

On Thursday, investigators from the Office of the Attorney General arrested 58-year-old Mohamed Bahra of Lincoln, R.I. and charged him with one count of knowingly receiving 26.3 ounces of stolen 18 karat gold, one count of failing to require proof of identification for sellers of precious metals, and one count of failure to keep proper sales records.

As alleged in court records, on July 31, 2023, a UPS employee stole 26.3 ounces of 18 karat gold rings from a UPS center in Warwick. The employee then went to the Four C’s Pawn Shop in Providence where he sold the rings to the defendant for $12,384. Subsequently, on August 1, 2023, the defendant brought the rings to Glines and Rhodes, a precious metal refinery in Attleboro, Massachusetts, and left them to be weighed and examined. At that time, an employee of the refinery contacted Tiffany & Co. (Tiffany’s) security, who verified that the rings were stolen and should have been delivered to a Providence jewelry store. Investigators later confirmed with Tiffanys that the estimated retail value of the rings was approximately $378,000.

As alleged, on August 18, 2023, the defendant spoke to Warwick Police and admitted to purchasing the rings from the UPS employee. On August 28, 2023, the UPS employee confirmed that he stole the rings and sold them to the defendant for $12,384. Finally, on January 16, 2024, the defendant met with investigators from the Office of the Attorney General where he again admitted to purchasing the rings from the UPS employee but could not produce a copy of the seller’s identification, nor a copy of a properly completed Precious Metals Unit report form, both of which are required by law.

Investigator William Piva led the investigation on behalf of the Office of the Attorney General.

The defendant is scheduled for a pre-arraignment conference on November 27, 2024, in Providence County Superior Court.