Large lobster theft uncovers seafood gangs that impacts consumers

Imagine the buffet. Forty thousand oysters, lobster worth US$400,000 and a cache of crabmeat all were stolen in separate incidents within weeks of each other in New England.

The first seafood vanished on November 22 in Falmouth, Maine, where the authorities suspect someone stole 14 cages full of oysters from an aquaculture site in Casco Bay. Many of the oysters were full grown and ready for sale, and together with the cages were worth US$20,000, according to the Maine Marine Patrol.

“This is a devastating situation for a small businessman,” said Marine Patrol Sgt Matthew Sinclair.

The other two thefts happened in Taunton, Massachusetts, about 160 miles (255 kilometres) away. First, a load of crab disappeared after leaving the Lineage Logistics warehouse on December 2. Then, on December 12, lobster meat destined for Costco stores in Illinois and Minnesota was stolen by a fraudulent trucking company, according to the broker who arranged the pickup.

“The carrier we hired impersonated a real carrier,” Dylan Rexing, CEO of Rexing Companies, said on Tuesday. “They had a spoofed email address. They changed the name on the side of the truck. They made a fake certified driver’s licence. It’s a very sophisticated crime.”

Lineage Logistics, Costco and Taunton Police did not respond to requests for comment, but Rexing said the police told him about the crab theft from the same warehouse. That kind of cargo theft has been a problem for over a decade, he said, but has got worse in recent years.

“It happens every day, multiple times a day,” he said.

Freight theft generally falls into two categories, said Chris Burroughs, president and CEO of Transportation Intermediaries Association, a trade organisation for the freight brokerage industry. The lobster heist fits in the first type, which involves someone impersonating a legitimate trucking company. The second type, known as strategic theft, often involves using phishing emails to gain access to computer systems and get paid without actually stealing the product.

“This is a massive, growing problem that needs to get addressed,” he said.

Given its short shelf life, the stolen lobster likely ended up in restaurants, both said. And while he has seen plenty of quips about stealing butter to go with the lobster, Rexing said such thefts ultimately harm consumers.

“Whether you eat seafood or not, they’re stealing other items. They’re stealing items to build your cars. They’re stealing items that go into computers,” he said. “Ultimately, that cost gets thrown to the consumer.”

-AP