July 8,2018
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Teaneck NJ, Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Dennis Calo announced the arrest of SHANNELL GRIGGS (DOB: 04/16/1990; single; and employed as a receptionist) of 354 Bryant Avenue, Syracuse, NY and GIVONNI BUTLER (DOB: 08/21/1989; single; and unemployed) of 27 Pine Street, Passaic, NJ on charges of Computer Related Theft, Theft By Deception, Impersonation, Money Laundering, Receiving Stolen Property, and Conspiracy. The arrests are the result of an investigation conducted by the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office under the direction of Chief Robert Anzilotti and the Teaneck Police Department under the direction of Chief Glenn M. O’Reilly.
In December 2017, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Financial Crimes Unit received a complaint of theft from the bank accounts of a recently deceased Teaneck resident. The executor of the decedent’s estate reported that the decedent’s bank accounts had been accessed by an unknown party and that approximately $375,000 had been stolen between 2015 and 2016.
During the course of the investigation, it was determined that Shannell GRIGGS, a bank employee, had unlawfully used the bank’s computerized account and customer service systems to access and take over the victim’s bank accounts. Shannell GRIGGS and her boyfriend, Givonni BUTLER, then stole approximately $375,000 through a combination of illicit debit card purchases, cash withdrawals, wire transfers, and cashier check purchases.
Shannell GRIGGS was arrested on June 29, 2018 in Syracuse, NY and charged with one count of Computer Related Theft, in an amount greater than $250,000, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-25c, a 1st degree crime; one count of Impersonation For The Purpose Of Obtaining A Benefit, in an amount greater than $75,000, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:21-17a(1), a 2nd degree crime; one count of Theft By Deception, in an amount greater than $75,000, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-4a, a 2nd degree crime; and one count of Financial Facilitation Of Criminal Activity, in an amount greater than $75,000 but less than $500,000, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:21-25b(2), a 2nd degree crime. GRIGGS was taken into custody in Syracuse, NY on the New Jersey warrant and is awaiting extradition proceedings.
A warrant for the arrest of Givonni BUTLER was issued on July 3, 2018 and served on July 5, 2018 as a detainer, since BUTLER is currently serving a prison sentence in Pennsylvania on an unrelated matter. He was charged with one count of Receiving Stolen Property, with a value greater than $75,000, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:20-7a, a 2nd degree crime; and one count of Conspiracy To Commit Computer Related Theft, in an amount greater than $5,000, in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:5-2a(1) and N.J.S.A. 2C:20-25c, a 2nd degree crime.
Acting Prosecutor Calo states that the charges are merely accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Acting Prosecutor Calo would like to thank the Teaneck and Syracuse Police Departments and the Onondaga County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance with this investigation.
