Four men, including two with reputed ties to the Hell's Angels, were convicted by a jury in Federal Court today of stealing scrap metal in Batavia.
Convicted of conspiracy to steal an interstate shipment and theft of an interstate shipment were Richard E. Riedman, 39, of Webster, Anthony Toscano, 47, of Rochester, Anthony J. Russell, 39, of Rochester and Timothy M. Stone, 32, of Chili.
Riedman and Stone were indicted in April 2011 on federal racketeering charges for their part in an alleged plot to help James Henry McAuley Jr. (aka "Mitch"), 62, an alleged Hell's Angel vice president, avoid apprehension for an alleged assault on a person viewed as a threat to the motorcycle club.
McAuley is married to 45-year-old Donna L. Boon (aka Donna L. McAuley), a Town of Batavia resident, who was first arrested in July 2009 as an alleged member of a methamphetamine ring headed by Donald G. Vanelli, 48, of 8394 Lake St., Le Roy. Vanelli is currently serving a lengthy federal prison sentence, but the original charges against Boon were later dropped.
In February, Boon, along with Riedman, was re-arrested by federal authorities and accused of being part of a meth distribution ring.
All of those charges are still pending.
Riedman, Toscano, Russell and Stone face a possible sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
The four men, along with Christopher Monfort, who was previously convicted in the case, were caught June 30 by Sheriff's deputies using a logging truck and pickup truck to steal more than 16 tons of scrap steel from a rail car at the CSX Transportation yard in Batavia, along with 17 tons of processed scrap steel.
The stolen scrap was awaiting shipment to a steel mill in Pennsylvania.
The federal case was prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Brett A. Harvey.
Sentencing is scheduled for January.
