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Detectives Bust Alleged Theft Rings Reselling Cargo Online
Police Say Stolen Freight Unloaded on Facebook Marketplace, eBay, Whatnot
Key Takeaways:
- Verisk CargoNet reported $131.58 million in cargo theft losses in the first quarter, with confirmed cases up 29%.
- Police say stolen freight is increasingly resold through online marketplaces and physical retail locations.
- Recent cases in Illinois, Tennessee and California recovered millions of dollars in stolen cargo.
Police busts of fencing operations — networks that resell stolen goods — indicate business is booming online and at in-store shopping venues where bargain buyers seek deals.
Facebook Marketplace, eBay, the live online market Whatnot and a local hardware store feature in ongoing criminal cases in which alleged thieves hawked stolen freight from trucks and trains.
“We’re watching transnational organized crime groups become the dominant force in the cargo-theft landscape, with a clear preference for goods that move easily through online resale channels,” noted Keith Lewis, vice president of operations at Verisk CargoNet.
His recent remarks were included in Verisk CargoNet’s assessment in April of cargo theft committed during the first quarter of this year in the U.S. and Canada. Estimated losses during the first three months were $131.58 million, unchanged from 2025. Confirmed cargo theft cases numbered 767, up 29%.
“Current patterns suggest that organized groups will continue prioritizing high-value, easily redistributed goods while concentrating on activity in major logistics hubs that support rapid movement and resale,” according to CargoNet.
While the rest of the country clocks out, cargo thieves clock in. ⏱️
Holiday weekends are prime time for cargo theft, and Memorial Day is no exception.
Verisk CargoNet's report is here. Know the hotspots, the losses, and the trends before thieves make their move:… pic.twitter.com/besnp97j3l — Verisk (@Verisk) May 22, 2026
Accused Thief Tracked
Palos Heights Police Department in a southwest Chicago suburb unraveled an apparent large-scale fencing operation in Illinois thanks to a tipoff by an intrepid loss prevention investigator for Sitka Gear, a high-end hunting gear and apparel brand.
The company reached out to police in May 2025 about 100 pairs of hunting boots worth $40,000 stolen as freight from Chicago.
On the lookout for its boots, a company investigator reportedly found online listings on Facebook Marketplace and eBay for identical boots, said Deputy Chief John Parnitzke.
The Sitka investigator bought a pair through eBay that was delivered with a “return address traced back to a Palos Heights residence,” Parnitzke added.
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Bissell vacuums were among the stolen goods recovered during from one cargo-theft operation. (Palos Heights, Ill., Police Department)
Police detectives executed search warrants for the online accounts selling the boots. They found the account holder allegedly “was selling large quantities of Sitka boots, as well as dozens of other items suspected to be stolen, including Bissell vacuums, Nike and Puma shoes, water tanks, LG computer monitors, headphones, blenders, and other consumer merchandise,” according to police.
Police and Cook County Sheriff’s community response team investigators conducted several undercover purchases, including Sitka boots, children’s Nike shoes and Puma gym shoes. All the items apparently were confirmed as stolen freight.
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Qasem
A raid on the home of suspect Almahdi Qasem, 20, and a storage unit led to the purported recovery of stolen merchandise, U.S. currency, two bank accounts connected with the sales of stolen goods and two vehicles used in the operation.
“The original Sitka boots were located inside the storage unit, along with merchandise belonging to Macy’s, Nordstrom, Bissell, Skytech Gaming and other retailers,” police stated. Detectives reportedly recovered $250,000 worth of stolen property linked to multiple freight thefts.
Qasem was charged with a Class 1 felony count of theft over $100,000 but under $500,000. Parnitzke told Transport Topics the criminal case is progressing after Qasem was indicted.
Stolen Water Pik Products
Gregory Luss, 44, of Memphis, Tenn., pleaded guilty March 3 to one count of possessing stolen goods from an interstate shipment in a case investigated by the FBI’s Cargo Theft Task Force.
Luss posted a Water Pik product for sale on his registered eBay account in October 2023 on the same day a tractor-trailer was stolen in Memphis “filled with Water Piks intended for shipment to Amazon,” according to court documents cited by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Tennessee.
He was facing 10 years in federal prison, which has no parole, and awaiting sentencing before U.S. District Judge Thomas L. Parker at press time.
“Instead of a luxury Water Pik, Mr. Luss will now have a standard prison-issued toothbrush in the Bureau of Prisons,” said U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant. “Cargo theft from shipping containers and facilities disrupts and harms crucial interstate commerce here in Memphis, which is known as ‘America’s Distribution Center.’ ”
FBI Special Agent Joseph E. Carrico, who heads the Nashville Field Office, noted that cargo theft disrupts shipments of necessary goods and increases costs for consumers and businesses.
“This guilty plea… makes it clear that anyone who threatens the nation’s supply chain will be tracked down and held accountable,” Carrico said.
Fencing Missing Freight
Los Angeles Police Department cargo theft detectives recently arrested Hannah Noto, 25, and Jude Bigay, 26, in a complex operation involving multiple law enforcement agencies. Search warrants were served April 1 at sites in North Hills, West Los Angeles, Sunland and Van Nuys.
The suspects allegedly admitted to being involved in a scheme “to defraud multiple clothing companies through an e-commerce scheme, then selling the stolen property on a popular live-streaming shopping platform, called Whatnot,” according to police.
During a raid on a Van Nuys warehouse near Interstate 405, police found about 55 pallets of stolen commercial and train cargo worth $1 million. Item brands included Ariat, Alo, Edikted, Duracell, Dyson, Milwaukee, Ninja and Skims.
Noto and Bigay were booked April 1 on a felony charge of receiving stolen property. Noto was released from jail on her own recognizance the same day as her arrest, according to inmate records at the Valley Jail in Van Nuys. Bigay was released April 2 from jail on his own recognizance, records showed. They both had pending court dates.
Power Tools, e-Bikes, Appliances
More than $5 million in stolen cargo has been linked to Dojoon Park, 43, who was charged last September with six felony counts of receiving stolen property worth over $950 and alleged losses above $500,000.
Most of the goods reportedly were “being resold through the storefront and online via retail platforms,” said Jim McDonnell, chief of the Los Angeles Police Department.
“We have taken down one of the major fencers in the cargo theft area, Dojoon Park of Montebello,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman of Los Angeles County announced Aug. 23. “Please know that when organized crime rings exploit our transportation system, we will identify them, dismantle the operations and hold individuals fully accountable for their actions.”
The arrest followed an investigation that began in July 2025 when “Union Pacific special agents discovered a train car full of consumer goods had been burglarized in Long Beach,” according to the district attorney’s office.
Detectives with search warrants raided Park’s DJ General Tool and Wire stores in Montebello and Huntington Park that were “identified as a major storefront fencing operation,” McDonnell said.
“Investigators recovered an estimated $4.5 million worth of stolen property, including power tools, appliances, e-bikes, and other commercial cargo allegedly stolen from train and cargo burglaries,” according to the district attorney.
Items reportedly recovered included Dyson vacuums as well as products from Milwaukee Tools, Dewalt and Makita.
Park, who pleaded not guilty, could receive a maximum sentence of 11 years in state prison if convicted of all charges.
His preliminary hearing is slated for June 18 in Los Angeles. He has been out on $225,000 bond since Sept. 19, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office noted.
