News / Golden State fast becoming a 'goldmine' for organised cargo crime

© Robert Carner

Cargo crime “is really going through the roof everywhere, globally”, according to the president and CEO of the Transport Asset Protection Association (TAPA) EMEA, Thorsten Neumann; but a reluctancy to act by crime prevention authorities and a high cost of living is making the US a hotspot.  

“When the economy is going down, crime is always going up…  High pricing and inflation means automatically that criminal activities are going up,” Mr Neumann explained. 

And Brandon Fried, executive director of the American Air Forwarder’s Association, told The Loadstar: “All I’m told by my members is it’s much bigger than you think, and everyone’s been adversely impacted by it… We’re just on the periphery of this.” 

Indeed, claims data for the US at freight insurance provider TT Club shows an increase this year in the theft of full truckloads of cargo 29% higher than claims in 2023 – of which the US accounts for 49%.  

A spokesperson for the American Trucking Association (ATA) told The Loadstar cargo crime could be categorised as either “straight theft” or “strategic theft”.  

“Straight cargo theft simply refers to the physical act of stealing cargo directly from a trailer, whereas strategic theft encompasses theft that is committed via fraud.” 

Strategic thefts are , in the main, committed by large international criminal groups that trick people into releasing often full truckloads of cargo by posing as a legitimate carrier, broker, or even seller. 

According to TT Club data, in 2022, the number of insurance claims for this totalled 96; in 2023 it was 139, and so far this year there have been 157 – with a “significant” rise in this type of organised crime recorded in California.  

TT Club MD of loss prevention Mike Yarwood explained: “In prior years, losses were typically spread quite evenly across California, Texas, Florida and, to a lesser degree, Illinois. 2024 data suggests 45% of all recorded incidents occurred in California, which is a significant shift in activity.” 

But those figures only represent calims recorded by TT Club – the actual statistics are much higher. According to CargoNet, between Q1 22 and Q2 24, reported instances of ‘strategic theft’ increased more than 1,400%.  

The ATA spokesperson added: “Those committing strategic thefts are incredibly sophisticated. These criminals operate massive organisations, some even have their own call centres and online stores to sell the stolen goods. And, due to the size of the operations, there is little to no impact if some of their people are arrested.  

“For example, several years ago, if law enforcement officers were to arrest a group of thieves for stealing cargo from truck trailers, the carriers operating in that area would see a decline in the instances of theft for a few months. Conversely, if police officers were to arrest eight people from an organised crime ring, more likely than not eight new people are sent in to replace them.” 

The spokesperson added that law enforcement was “lacking”, noting that in many states, dedicated cargo theft task forces had been reduced in numbers or or even been disbanded.  

“This leaves law enforcement officers that are not as well versed in cargo theft, who may not have the proper training to recognise that when cargo is stolen it is not ‘just a property crime’,” the spokesperson said.  

And Mr Fried added that law enforcement authorities were “reluctant to get involved”.  

He said: “I think what’s happening is that they don’t understand our business. They don’t understand the nuances, and they’re reluctant to get involved because it’s cloudy and it’s complicated. It’s not like a robbery, where a guy comes in with a gun. It’s much more lucrative.”

TAPA advises that to mitigate risks, companies “should avoid an ‘it won’t happen to us’ mentality”, and ensure they have “rigid security awareness” across staff, including drivers.

It has security standards available, designed with manufacturer and logistics service providers, to protect facilities and trucks, and increase secure parking locations.