Alexandria man among three sentenced in Washington-area airbag theft ring
Adisorn Damrongchai and two co-conspirators stole hundreds of airbags from Northern Virginia neighborhoods
An Alexandria man and two co-conspirators have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a wide-ranging airbag theft conspiracy that targeted vehicles across Northern Virginia and spanned more than two years, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Adisorn Damrongchai, 47, of Alexandria; Yuchen Zhang, 28, a Chinese national; and Keith William Smith, 45, of Severn, Md., were convicted on charges related to the interstate transportation and sale of stolen goods. Together, the three men were responsible for stealing hundreds of airbags from vehicles across the region.
Zhang received the stiffest sentence — three years and two months in federal prison. Damrongchai was sentenced to two years and nine months. Smith received six months.
According to court documents, Zhang and Damrongchai began stealing airbags from vehicles in Virginia in August 2022, then transported them to Maryland to sell to Smith, who dealt in used car parts. Prosecutors said Smith paid Damrongchai a total of $47,170 and Zhang a total of $37,220 for the stolen airbags.
Authorities arrested Zhang and Damrongchai in Arlington County on Nov. 13, 2022, shortly after the pair had stolen several airbags. Officers found the men in possession of window punches, screwdrivers, pliers, and a flashlight, along with six stolen airbags.
The arrests did little to deter the scheme. Court documents show the two men resumed stealing airbags and selling them to Smith after their initial arrest. On Sept. 20, 2024, Zhang traveled to Silver Spring, Md., stole an airbag, and returned to Virginia. Two weeks later, on Oct. 4, 2024, Zhang picked up Damrongchai, and the two drove through neighborhoods in Fairfax and Herndon, stealing airbags from multiple vehicles in a single day.
That afternoon, law enforcement searched the residences and vehicles of both men and recovered 14 airbags, some of which had been stolen earlier that morning.
It was not the first time Zhang had faced federal charges. In 2020, he was convicted in the Eastern District of Virginia for his role in a $1.1 million gift card fraud scheme and sentenced to seven months in prison.
Zhang pleaded guilty in Arlington to grand larceny and destruction of property before entering a separate federal guilty plea on Dec. 18, 2024, to conspiracy to engage in interstate transportation of stolen property. He was sentenced on March 7, 2025.
Smith pleaded guilty on March 10, 2025, and was sentenced on May 28, 2025.
Damrongchai was convicted in Arlington on Feb. 21, 2025, on charges including vehicle tampering, destruction of property, and possession of burglarious tools. He later pleaded guiltyon Dec. 3, 2025, to the federal conspiracy charge and was sentenced shortly after.
The FBI Washington Field Office investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Katherine E. Rumbaugh and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Lyndi McVey prosecuted it on behalf of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
