Yes, Squeeze Benz is in jail. In January 2025, New Jersey Judge Christopher Kazlau sentenced 19-year-old Antonio Ginestri, the Queens man identified by police as the YouTuber behind the Squeeze.benz channel, to five years in state prison for a series of burglaries and ATM thefts across northern New Jersey.1Wired. Anonymous YouTubers Street Racing Through New York He remains in custody serving that sentence, and he still faces open charges in New York, two other New Jersey counties, and an active arrest warrant in Connecticut.
What He Was Sentenced For
The prison term came out of a contested plea deal tied to a crime spree that prosecutors say ran from late January into February 2024, involving Ginestri and at least two accomplices, one of them 16 years old.2NJ.com. Daredevil Social Media Influencer Stole ATMs Across NJ1Wired. Anonymous YouTubers Street Racing Through New York The best-known incident was a February 9, 2024 theft at a Dunkin’ Donuts in Garfield, where suspects took an ATM valued at $2,500 containing roughly $4,000 in cash. Ginestri was also accused of kicking an employee during that robbery.
The broader series included:
- A January 27, 2024 burglary at a Tenafly consignment store, with about $38,950 in handbags and other goods taken after suspects broke the front window.2NJ.com. Daredevil Social Media Influencer Stole ATMs Across NJ
- A February 6, 2024 burglary at a Speedway gas station on Route 46 in Fairfield, linked to a gray BMW X7 with a stolen registration.3TAPinto. Fairfield Detectives Arrest 3 in Connection With Two Separate Burglaries
- An ATM theft the same day from a Shell station on Route 17 North in Hasbrouck Heights, with the machine loaded into a BMW SUV.2NJ.com. Daredevil Social Media Influencer Stole ATMs Across NJ
- Additional burglaries in Roseland and Secaucus on the same February 6 morning, tied to the same stolen BMW X7.4NorthJersey.com. Squeeze Benz Street Racer NJ Burglaries
In July 2024, Ginestri was formally charged with burglary, employing a juvenile in the commission of a crime, theft, and two counts of conspiracy. Investigators built the case using cellular location data placing his phone near the scenes and surveillance footage of a dark BMW at multiple locations.4NorthJersey.com. Squeeze Benz Street Racer NJ Burglaries2NJ.com. Daredevil Social Media Influencer Stole ATMs Across NJ He had also pleaded guilty in March 2024 to possession of a stolen motorcycle and was ordered to pay $3,000 in restitution.
How He Was Caught
The arrest itself had nothing to do with the street-racing videos that made the channel famous. On May 16, 2024, NYPD officers from the 114th Precinct picked Ginestri up in Astoria, Queens, over a February 10, 2024 assault at the Steinway Deli in Long Island City, where he was accused of punching a man.5NBC New York. YouTuber Squeeze Benz Charged in NJ Burglaries6New York Post. Daredevil Street Racer Busted After Link to IG Profile7Newark Department of Public Safety. Press Release: Queens New York Man Arrested for Eluding Once he was in custody, authorities connected him to the much larger set of New Jersey charges.
Other Charges Still Open
The five-year New Jersey sentence is not the end of his legal exposure. He faces a third-degree assault charge in New York tied to the February 2024 deli incident, open charges in two other New Jersey counties, and an active arrest warrant in Connecticut.1Wired. Anonymous YouTubers Street Racing Through New York
The Identity Dispute
One wrinkle sits alongside the conviction. Ginestri’s defense attorney, Stefan Erwin, and a channel associate known as “MBox” both maintain that Ginestri is not the driver in the Squeeze.benz videos, pointing to new clips that appeared on the channel while he was in custody.1Wired. Anonymous YouTubers Street Racing Through New York The driver always wore a full-face helmet, and the channel used voice modification, which makes proving who was behind the wheel in any given clip difficult. The prison sentence does not rest on identifying him as the driver; it rests on the separate robbery evidence, and that is what is keeping him in jail.