Success Stories

Summary: Over the past several weeks Bob Hastings, along with Private Sector Investigators, SETSC and CargoNet have been working with the GBI Major Theft Unit on a number of Metro Atlanta Cargo Thefts and were able to develop leads on two recent cargo thefts involving Pet and Snack Food Products. Through the investigation, buyers of the stolen cargo were identified along with the suspects involved in the thefts and the Brokers of the stolen goods. On Wednesday a operation led by the GBI Major Theft Unit was put into action, which led to a full recovery of some Snack Foods Product recently stolen in the Metro Atlanta Area and two arrests were made. Aside from the full recovery of pet food and snack foods, a tractor stolen in fall 2013, which was being used by the suspects was also recovered. A commendation is in order for all of the Law Enforcement Agencies that assisted in this successful operation, to include the following: GBI-MTU, Georgia Motor Carrier Compliance (MCCD), Cedartown Police Department, Polk County Police Department, Polk County Sheriff’s Department and the Paulding County Sheriff’s Department.

Summary: FOLLOW UP: This is a follow up to a CargoNet incident that occurred and was reported to CargoNet on May 29, 2013. On October 7, 2013, The CargoNet Command Center was contacted by Lemont, IL Police Department and Illinois State Police regarding some product they recovered – Baby Food Oatmeal Cereal. They had suspected it was stolen but were unsure of when and where it was stolen from. CargoNet queried the database and had a direct match of a load of Baby Food that was stolen from Summit, IL in the end of May. It was a CargoNet member brokered load. Although the customer will want to destroy the product, we did assist in preventing product from reaching the market.

Summary:  A CargoNet member reported a missing driver in  the Memphis, TN area that fell out of contact with their carrier. CargoNet tried to establish contact with the driver’s family but were unsuccessful.  Our next step was to ask NICB to check if the tractor/trailer was in NCIC and it was not, we then called the carrier to begin the process of getting it into NCIC.   CargoNet asked Memphis PD to assist with taking the report to which he agreed to help the carrier. As this was going on, the driver contacted the carrier and began making excuses why he had lost contact. CargoNet reached out to the driver for additional details on the condition and whereabouts of the tractor and trailer. The tractor and trailer were found, but the gas was siphoned from the vehicle, the trailer was missing two tires, and about half the load was stolen. Memphis PD asked that we then give the carrier their direct phone number and he proceeded to help them get the vehicle secured and impounded.  Although I don’t think it was ever officially reported stolen Memphis PD will be pursuing charges on the driver.

Summary: A CargoNet transportation member contacted CargoNet and wanted an alert put out on a suspect logistics company, who stole a load from a manufacturer in Little Falls, NJ. They copied the suspect logistics company on the email when they requested the alert to be sent out and the suspect company immediately called CargoNet member to say they were returning the shipment now and the shipment was returned the following day.

Summary: Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) investigators traveled to Miami with arrest warrants for two Cuban nationals as a result of a joint investigation with the Miami-Dade Cargo Theft Task Force. The two subjects, Yoandy Linares Machado and Yosvani Cordero, were responsible for the theft of a load of batteries from Dalton, Georgia in November 2014. In January 2015, a portion of the batteries were recovered by the Miami-Dade Cargo Theft Task Force during a search warrant of a warehouse in Miami, Florida. On the evening of August 3, 2015, a surveillance was established at the residences of both wanted subjects. One of the subjects was arrested after being followed to a local bar. The second subject was arrested at his residence. While serving the arrest warrant investigators found a large amount of dunnage containing tobacco shipping labels and empty boxes and a passcode to a local storage facility. Following these findings agents promptly reached out to CargoNet to inquire about any recent tobacco product cargo thefts. With the information provided the CargoNet analyst responded with the confirmation of a recent tobacco theft in the CargoNet system. The analyst then sent all of the information to the investigators and a search warrant was obtained for the unit. The search revealed approximately 750 cartons (15 pallets) of a recent tobacco theft that were identified as stolen in Winter Heaven, Florida during a cargo theft on July 24, 2015. It is estimated that the retail value of the recovery is approximately $500,000.

Summary: CargoNet put out an alert that a CargoNet member received a call from a man with an Eastern-European accent claiming to be Richard of Qualls Enterprises. The suspect was interested in a commodity of bottled juices going from Los Angeles, CA to Atlanta, GA and then to Florida. The carrier was not setup with the CargoNet member and the member e-mailed over their packet to him. He offered to do the job for $6,000 which was a red flag. The member proceeded to check SAFER and realized his information did not match and requested that he call back with his SAFER information. The man never called back.