New Copper Theft Scam: Just Show Some Real-looking Paperwork

While some thieves break into facilities at night, here is one in which the bad guys just pulled up in trucks, displayed the paperwork for a pickup and good-bye copper. A brazen heist in western Georgia last month has Southwire and law enforcement officials wondering what happened to $500,000 worth of copper. The theft reportedly occurred on April 29, but was reported to Carrollton, Georgia police on May 4. Three 18-wheeler trucks — green, white, and red in color — arrived that day and were loaded with copper destined for Indiana. The trucks displayed the name of L. Transport in arch style writing. The trucks had been sent to Southwire by an independent broker for the purpose of making the Indiana delivery. The broker had received faxed information for these loads showing the trucking company name to be LaRolle Transport out of Miami/Hialeah, Florida. “LaRolle states these are not their trucks,” a Carollton Police police lieutenant said. “The broker received paper work for LaRolle but the trucks themselves had L. Transport on them.” The loads did not arrive as scheduled in Indiana, and the identity of the true owners of the trucks is unknown. The Southwire spokesman said the drivers appeared to have all the proper documents to pick up the shipment, but the documents were indeed fakes. He described the theft as an “isolated incident.” The Georgia Bureau of Investigation is now involved and Carrollton Police have made contact with law enforcement officials in Hialeah, Florida, who are also assisting with the case.

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