Food - Drink
Thieves Who Made Off With $9 Million Of Meat Have Been Caught
By CHRIS SANDS
When you think of a large-scale heist, you probably picture thieves with bags of jewels, gold, or money, but that’s not the case in the American Midwest. Meat packing facilities in Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin have gone through 45 beef- and pork-related thefts, with losses totaling $9 million.
After another theft in Nebraska in the summer of 2022, by the same ring of thieves as prior meat heists, the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security Investigation office, HSI Miami, and Florida Highway Patrol merged forces to investigate the crime spree. In October, three men related to the crimes were finally arrested.
The three Florida men were tracked down through phone records and GPS technology, and are now charged with money laundering and transporting three stolen trailers of goods valued at over half a million dollars. Not all of the stolen meat has been recovered and the investigation is still ongoing, meaning more arrests may be pending.