A Flushing, New York, man will spend 42 months in federal prison for stealing identities to buy luxury cars from a Greenwich dealership. The vehicles were then shipped to New York for resale.

U.S. District Judge Sarala V. Nagala sentenced Lei Zhou, 43, on Wednesday, Sept. 23, in Hartford. U.S. Attorney David X. Sullivan of Connecticut announced the sentence.

Zhou and unnamed accomplices used stolen personal information and counterfeit identity cards to apply for loans to purchase or lease at least six luxury vehicles worth more than $650,000 from a Greenwich car dealership, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. The group then transported the vehicles to New York to resell them.

Most vehicles were repossessed before resale.

In one instance, on Oct. 4, 2022, Zhou used a stolen identity to secure $114,175 in financing for a 2021 Chevrolet Corvette from the dealership. He also submitted a forged $14,000 check in another identity theft victim's name as a down payment. He then drove the Corvette to New York for resale.

Zhou pleaded guilty May 22 to one count of conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. He has been detained since his arrest on Aug. 30, 2024.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) led the investigation with assistance from the Greenwich Police Department and the New York City Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elena L. Coronado prosecuted the case.

Zhou has prior convictions for menacing with a weapon, aggravated harassment and attempted robbery, Greenwich Free Press reported. He also has a federal conviction in the Southern District of New York related to methamphetamine trafficking.

The name of the Greenwich dealership was not included in public court records. No information about co-conspirators or whether they face charges has been released.