Show-Me State Times

Two men from the Detroit, Michigan area have admitted to stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of watches from a jewelry store in Ellisville, Missouri.

Kordaryl Cross, 25, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis Tuesday to conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property. Dajuan Marcellus, 34, pleaded guilty to the same charge on July 29.

Both men admitted hatching a plan to use a stolen vehicle to travel to the Ellisville store to steal Rolex watches. On January 2, 2023, Marcellus bought a prepaid Visa gift card that Cross used eight days later to purchase sledgehammers at a Missouri retailer. Marcellus, Cross and at least two others stole a Dodge Ram truck from Brentwood that they then drove to Ellisville. Marcellus and one other person entered the store and used sledgehammers to smash glass cases containing the watches while Cross monitored the time. They then drove to a parking garage and abandoned the stolen truck. Cross and Marcellus took the watches to Illinois.

Marcellus is scheduled to be sentenced on October 29 and Cross on December 9. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both prison and a fine.

The Ellisville Police Department investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Gwendolyn Carroll is prosecuting the case.