The Wild West Returns: Train Cargo Theft Is on the Rise
Innovation in the theft of retail products never stops. Insiders steal cash and merchandise. Semi-organized mobs flash rob stores. Good old-fashioned shoplifting is still a big factor. Heck, thieves even follow around delivery drivers.
Goods in transit are another target, and in a modern twist on an 1860s tactic, train burglaries are on the rise. The Los Angeles Times brings us up to date: “A string of at least 10 heists targeting BNSF trains in California and Arizona since [March 2024] have resulted in the theft of about $2 million worth of Nike Sneakers.”
The article examined several of the heists, which it says are connected to criminal gangs in Sinaloa, Mexico. Most recently, on 13 January nearly 2,000 pairs of high-end sneakers (including Nigel Sylvester x Air Jordan 4s, which were set to be released for sale on 14 March) were lifted from a train near Perrin, Arizona. The haul was worth an estimated $440,000.
The Times said sometimes the criminals received tips about shipments that included valuable content, though sometimes they simply observed trains that had what looked to be high-quality locking devices. The trains are often well over a mile long. Getting out of congested, high-population areas, the trains often must halt due to other train traffic. They also can get stopped for hours out in the open scrub and desert land waiting on a sidetrack for oncoming traffic to pass.
These stops provide excellent opportunities for thieves to board the trains. Then, at a location the thieves choose, they cut an air hose or sabotage signal boxes. When the train stops, the thieves toss cargo off the train, which is picked up by associates in vans and cargo trucks.
“The company said its crews are instructed not to confront the thieves, but to report the incidents instead,” the Times reported. “But the crews rarely encounter them, it said, because the trains are so long and the thieves take care to evade detection.”
While Nike has been a particular target, other goods have been boosted as well. One theft in December involved smart vacuum cleaners. A New York Times article on the incidents reported electronics were also a targeted product and pointed to a 2023 theft of $590,000 of Turtle Beach Stealth Pro gaming headsets.
Once stolen, the goods are often sold on online marketplaces such as eBay or third-party Amazon stores.
“Both Amazon and eBay said in statements that they have zero tolerance for criminal activity on their platforms, and that they work with law enforcement to support prosecutions against people who sell stolen goods,” the LA Times reported.
Authorities made a major arrest in June 2024. “Felipe Arturo Avalos-Mejia… allegedly used scouts to help him select which trains to target, supplied vehicles for and paid burglary crews and facilitated the sale of stolen merchandise, according to a complaint filed in the Phoenix federal court,” the LA Times reported.
While authorities said they believed Avalos-Mejia was a key leader in the rail thefts, his arrest did not slow the operation with burglaries continuing. The shipment that was stolen on 13 January included tracking devices that led to the recovery of some of the merchandise as well as 11 arrests.
The Association of American Railroads said rail freight companies paid more than $100 million dollars in insurance claims for stolen goods in 2024.
“Industry estimates suggest that over 65,000 thefts occurred in 2024 representing a roughly 40 percent increase over the prior year,” the association reported. “Additionally, railroads are also reporting an escalation in tactics with suspects being armed increasing the potential for apprehending these individuals to result in violence.” They also estimated that only one in 10 rail cargo thefts resulted in an arrest.
The group calls for increased penalties for rail theft, developing a coordinated federal approach since the thefts are increasingly interstate and transnational in nature, and for funding to ensure efficient and effective prosecution of cargo thieves.
