Michigan Men Sentenced for Smash and Grab at St. Louis County Jewelry Store

ST. LOUIS - Two men from the Detroit, Michigan area have been sentenced to federal prison for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of Rolex watches from a jewelry store in Ellisville, Missouri.

U.S. District Judge Henry E. Autrey on Monday sentenced Kordaryl Cross, 35, to 57 months in prison. Judge Autrey sentenced Dajuan Marcellus, 34, in October to 37 months in prison. Both were ordered to pay $344,300 to the jeweler.

On Jan. 10, 2023, Cross bought 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 the next day. 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.

Cross and Marcellus each pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in St. Louis to conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property.

Both Cross and Marcellus were on supervised release for separate robbery cases in the Eastern District of Michigan at the time of the crime. They were each sentenced in 2023 to 18 months in prison.

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