Eight individuals were charged with conspiracy to transport and possess stolen property in connection with an international, organized scheme to steal cargo from commercial shippers, according to a joint announcement last week by the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

From March 2023 to the present, the defendants carried out a large-scale, organized scheme to steal cargo from commercial shippers.

In total, the ring stole goods worth at least approximately $10 million by diverting, possessing, transporting, and selling numerous loads of stolen merchandise relying on the coordinated efforts of at least one “dispatcher” located abroad and facilitators, drivers, and workers located in the United States.

They operated throughout the United States targeting high-value merchandise including electronics, liquor, meat, fish, eggs, clothing, skincare products, and cryptocurrency mining machines.

The members of the ring then offloaded and sold the stolen merchandise—including to fences, who knowingly purchased and resold stolen merchandise on the secondary market—for an illicit profit.

“As alleged, the defendants were members of a sophisticated, international enterprise whose members stole millions of dollars’ worth of merchandise and sold those stolen goods on the black market,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “Organized cargo theft is an attack on the integrity of our nation’s commercial supply chain and our markets more generally. Those who conspire to disrupt commerce and harm consumers will be met with a coordinated law enforcement response. Our Office is committed to ridding our supply chains of organized crime, and we will pursue those who exploit global commerce for illicit gain.”

The case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit.

The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.