HOLLIDAYSBURG — A trial for members of the Florida Felony Lane Gang could take an extended period of time due to the amount of evidence that would need to be presented, Senior Deputy Attorney General Rachel Anne Wheeler said during a status conference Wednesday morning.

“The evidence we would be presenting would be extensive,” Wheeler said. “I estimate we would need about two weeks.”

When asked by Judge Jackie Atherton Bernard if the prosecution would be open to a joint trial for alleged gang members Tiffany John of Philadelphia, Shalda Debra Chapman of East Orange, New Jersey, and Shaquille Davonte Lewis of Sunrise, Florida, Wheeler said yes because the evidence “would essentially be the exact same” for each defendant. The only additional time needed would be for potential questioning and witnesses presented by the joint defense attorneys.

Wheeler told Bernard that the state Attorney General’s Office was also working on extraditing alleged gang member Vincent Bailey from Florida. She said Bailey, of Fort Lauderdale, was only being held by Florida authorities until June 6.

The AG’s Office was denied an “aviation team” to extradite Bailey, Wheeler said, so they are working with the state police’s fugitive unit.

Philadelphia resident Julie Madden, who is implicated in the case, is also in custody in Florida, but won’t be released for trial in Pennsylvania until she finishes serving her sentence, Wheeler said.

Chapman, 51, John, 32, and Lewis, 29, are facing dozens of felony charges related to their alleged participation in the organized crime ring, including counts of conspiracy to commit forgery, conspiracy to commit identity theft and corrupt organizations – employee.

Bailey, 26, and Madden, 34, face similar charges, but their cases remain inactive, online court documents show.

According to Wheeler, another gang member, Jason Vernon, remains at large.

The crime ring was under investigation from December 2024 until arrests were made in October 2025, with incidents reported in Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia, New Jersey and New York. Centered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the gang allegedly steals victims’ identities, creates fraudulent identifications and commits bank fraud, according to the affidavit of probable cause.

Known as the “Felony Lane Gang” for their use of the drive-thru bank lane farthest from surveillance cameras to cash fraudulent checks while avoiding detection, the group is responsible for widespread smash and grab thefts, the affidavit states.

In Pennsylvania, incidents were reported not only in Blair County, but in Cambria, Centre, Bedford, Somerset and at least 10 other counties. As of June 2025, state police identified about 58 incidents with losses of about $100,000.

First assistant public defender John Siford, who represents John, asked Bernard to schedule an additional status conference in late summer or early fall and requested an extension to file any pre-trial motions.

“It will literally take hundreds of hours to go through the discovery provided,” Siford said, adding that data extractions from the defendants’ cellphones still needed to be performed.

Bernard asked Siford if John had considered cooperating with the prosecution, to which Siford said he “wouldn’t go that far.”

Chapman’s defense attorney Elizabeth Ann Christopher also asked for an extension in filing pre-trial motions, but said she was “hopeful our case might resolve” before their next court proceeding.

Bernard granted the requests and scheduled a follow-up status conference for 2:30 p.m. Aug. 28.

Bernard also gave the attorneys a 90-day extension to file their pre-trial motions.

While noting that the 90 days could be extended further “upon appropriate request,” Bernard cautioned counsel about timeliness.

“I do not want to drag this case out into 2027,” Bernard said.

Bernard added that the extension would also apply to Lewis who, along with his defense attorney Stacy Renee Parks, was not present at the hearing.

The status conference set the stage for Chapman, John and Lewis to be tried jointly if their cases are not resolved beforehand.

John and Lewis have been in custody at the Blair County Prison since their October arrests.

John’s bail was set at $200,000, while Lewis’ was set at $2 million. Chapman remains free on $100,000 unsecured bail.

Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor-Musselman is at 814-946-7458.