Romanian thief named 'David Beckham' arrested in New York after £8k gem heist

A thief arrested in connection with an $8k gem heist in New York was found with a state driver’s licence identifying his name as David Beckham.

The Romanian national, who snuck across the US border via Mexico in 2022, is part of a "gypsy" crime ring, according to police chiefs.

The fraudster and a woman stole a diamond bracelet in October from a jewellers in Oceanside, Long Island.

Officers used face-recognition technology from security and released an intelligence bulletin, which reached a British crime analyst who successfully ID’d the fugitive.

County Executive Bruce Blakeman told a press conference last year: "We were visited, apparently, by a celebrity in Nassau County, David Beckham. Although this isn’t a soccer player, this is a celebrity because this individual is wanted in many countries.

"Someone who has international warrants out, no fingerprinting, given a drivers licence. This is outrageous and we have to change the laws of New York state."

The alleged culprit is still being held by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and is believed to belong to Romania’s Transnational Organised Crime Group.

Officers are still hunting his accomplice and say she will be deported with him if she is traced.

Licencing laws are currently under fire in New York state following the controversial introduction of a new piece of legislation which was hit by a lawsuit by President Donald Trump's administration.

The lawsuit took aim at a state law known as the Driver’s License Access and Privacy Act, or the "Green Light Law," which the state enacted in 2019 and allowed migrants in the United States illegally to obtain driver's licences.

It directed the state's Department for Motor Vehicles to accept various foreign documents as proof of identification and age for standard licences and barred the state agency from inquiring about the immigration status of applicants.

The Justice Department under President Trump alleged the law was impeding its ability to address a "crisis of illegal immigration" and argued the law interfered with the enforcement of federal immigration laws in New York.

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The Justice Department had argued the law violated the US Constitution.

Then-Attorney General Pam Bondi accused the state officials, both Democrats, of prioritising "illegal aliens over American citizens".

However, the judge found no evidence that the state law either usurps federal authority or unlawfully discriminates against the federal Government.

The state’s attorney general, Letitia James, said: "As I said from the start, our laws protect the rights of all New Yorkers and keep our communities safe. I will always stand up for New Yorkers and the rule of law."

Lawmakers who introduced the legislation said it aimed improve public safety on the roads, as people without licences sometimes drove without one, or without having passed a road test.

Under the law, people who do not possess a valid Social Security number can submit alternative forms of ID.

This includes valid passports and driver’s licences issued in other countries.

However, applicants must still get a permit and pass a road test to qualify for a "standard driver’s licence", with the legislation not applying to commercial driver’s licences.