Police said Pottstown defendant linked to stolen cars and incidents in Upper Providence and Horsham
A Pottstown woman is facing multiple felony charges after investigators said she was connected to a stolen vehicle case in Upper Gwynedd Township last summer through surveillance footage, cell phone data and DNA evidence.
Laila M. Carter, 25, of the 300 block of Grant Street, was charged by police last month with two felony counts each of theft, receiving stolen property, conspiracy to commit theft, and conspiracy to receive stolen property, and a misdemeanor charge each of theft, receiving stolen property, and conspiracy offenses, and fleeing police, according to court documents.
Upper Gwynedd Police said the investigation began Aug. 11, 2025, when officers received a report of a white 2018 Infiniti Q60 stolen from Station Square Boulevard at the Parc at Pennbrook apartments.
Surveillance footage showed a gray Jeep Grand Cherokee and a silver Infiniti G50 arriving at the complex shortly before the theft, with individuals exiting the vehicles and driving away in the stolen Infiniti about 10 minutes later, police said.
Investigators later determined that the Jeep seen in the footage had also been stolen from Horsham Township, and both vehicles were observed traveling together to and from the location of the theft.
Police said detectives later tracked the Jeep to the Norristown and Pottstown areas using surveillance and license plate information.
On Aug. 11, investigators located the Jeep in Pottstown and requested assistance from local police. When the vehicle stopped along Walnut Street, a female driver exited the Jeep but ran back to the vehicle and fled when detectives identified themselves, believed to be Carter, according to the affidavit.
During the investigation, detectives also discovered that the stolen Infiniti had been listed for sale on Facebook Marketplace under the name “Qua Wilson” for $1,500, investigators said. Police obtained search warrants for subscriber information tied to the online listing and related IP addresses.
Records obtained from internet service providers and phone companies led investigators to Carter, whose cell phone activity placed her in the area of the thefts and later encounters with police, according to the affidavit.
Call records showed the phone traveling from Philadelphia to the Horsham area on the night of the theft, then moving through Lansdale, North Wales and Upper Gwynedd Township around the time the vehicles were stolen, according to the criminal complaint.
The phone later traveled back toward Philadelphia before appearing in Plymouth Township later that morning, police said.
Additional evidence surfaced after the stolen Infiniti was involved in other incidents in Upper Providence Township and Upper Merion Township several days later. Police in Upper Merion eventually pursued the vehicle and apprehended the driver after a crash. During a search of the vehicle, investigators recovered a purple cup with a straw that did not belong to the vehicle’s owner, which was collected as evidence.
In February 2026, Montgomery County detectives obtained a DNA sample from Carter during an unrelated investigation, which was later compared to the DNA recovered from the straw in the stolen Infiniti. Testing linked Carter’s DNA to the cup found inside the vehicle, police said.
Based on the investigation, detectives concluded Carter was operating the stolen Jeep during the Aug. 11 encounter in Pottstown and was connected to the stolen vehicles involved in the case.
Carter posted $5,000 cash bond and has a preliminary hearing March 19 before Magisterial District Judge Suzan Leonard.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
