|
Seafood theft a multi-million-dollar problem
September 9, 1997
Web posted at: 5:08 p.m. EDT (2108 GMT)From Correspondent Jennifer Auther
LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Seafood has become one of the hottest catches for cargo thieves.
"You have to figure a truckload of seafood has a value upward of hundreds of thousands of dollars," said seafood wholesaler Joe Heidelmaier. "With the value of shrimp upward of $10, $15 a pound, a 40,000-pound trailer is close to half a million dollars!"
Seafood is only a part of the workload for the "Cargo Cats," a special task force in the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
Catching seafood bandits, however, presents a unique problem. Lt. Joe Lista, who leads the task force, and other investigators have to catch the thieves within 24 hours, or the evidence will most likely have been digested.
"It is tough! And one of the reasons is that there's no standardization of reporting, so it's really hard to get a clear and concise idea of what kind of problem we're confronting," Lista said.
It is estimated that $6 billion worth of all kinds of cargo -- some of it seafood -- is lost to theft in the United States each year. Some cargo pirates kidnap drivers to get their hands on computers, clothing and other goods.
Sometimes, seafood thieves approach restaurateurs in an attempt to cut back-door deals. "I had a guy come in one time with a 15-pound spiny lobster that he had gotten from somewhere, that he had like on his belt," said Matthew Stein of the University Restaurant Group.
172K/16 sec. AIFF or WAV sound
In his case, the deal was never consummated.
More often, investigators and victims say, the thieves already have someone lined up, ready to buy the stolen cargo. Lista says many cases appear to be inside jobs. The evidence is quickly taken outside the United States to be sold in other countries.
"There's no doubt that some of this is spontaneous," Lista said. "But there's also no doubt that some of this involves criminals doing their homework and getting very good intelligence information."
|
Sound off on our message boards You said it... |
|
© 1997 Cable News Network, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.