Chicago woman declines plea bargain in catalytic converter theft ring case

A Chicago woman who cooperated with Westmoreland County prosecutors in relation to charges stemming from an organized catalytic converter theft ring believed the case against her was going to be dropped, her attorney said Friday.

But when Maria Padilla, 39, arrived for a hearing, she learned otherwise, said attorney Samir Sarna.

“I’m told today that that’s not the case,” he said to Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio.

Instead, an offer was made by prosecutors for Padilla to plead guilty to felony charges, Sarna said.

He declined and asked to set a date in late January for a nonjury trial on charges of corrupt organizations, conspiracy, dealing in proceeds of unlawful activities and related offenses.

“I don’t believe the Commonwealth has the evidence to prove (the charges),” he said.

Three of Padilla’s co-defendants were sentenced in September to five to 15 years in prison for their roles in what authorities said was one of the most sophisticated organized theft rings in the region. They were responsible for stealing catalytic converters from parked vehicles in Westmoreland, Allegheny and Fayette counties.

Sarna said he and Padilla believed the case against her would be dismissed after those men pleaded guilty. Assistant District Attorney Corey Marasco said he was not sure if the state would agree to a nonjury trial, as he was filling in for the assigned prosecutor on the case.

“He said if the deal wasn’t agreed upon, to put it on the trial list,” Marasco told Judge Bilik-DeFazio.

Prosecutors said Padilla has cooperated with authorities. She is free on bail and living in Illinois.

Police said Padilla rented four vehicles that the suspects used to get around the Pittsburgh region and purchased plane tickets for herself and the men to fly from Chicago to Washington, D.C., in November 2022.

Christian Buie, 33, Antonio Dewayne Johnson, 37, and Harold T. Wade, 31, pleaded guilty in late June to multiple counts in four separate cases including conspiracy, theft, receiving stolen property and criminal mischief.

Stewart Hinton IV, 38, of Chicago, the fourth member of the theft ring, pleaded guilty last December to racketeering and other offenses. He was sentenced to three to 10 years in prison.

Investigators said the men traveled from Chicago and methodically targeted car dealerships in North Huntingdon, Moon Township and in Fayette, along with vehicles elsewhere. They stole dozens of catalytic converters from new and used vehicles in late 2022 and early 2023.

There were more than two dozen victims totaling around $400,000 in financial losses, prosecutors said.

Catalytic converters, devices that help reduce exhaust emissions, are made of precious metals including platinum, palladium and rhodium that can be sold on the black market.