A national catalytic converter theft ring that generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue was dismantled in an unprecedented federal investigation, the Justice Department said Wednesday.
The operation included arrests, searches, and seizures in California, Oklahoma, Wyoming, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, and Virginia.
Twenty-one people were charged in U.S. courts States for the Eastern District of California and the Northern District of Oklahoma, federal officials said. Investigators also served 32 search warrants and seized millions of dollars in assets, including homes, bank accounts, cash and vehicles.
The operation is the first national demolition of a catalytic converter theft ring coordinated by the Department of Justice, said Lauren Horwood, spokeswoman for the US attorney’s office for the Eastern District of California.
In the California case, the Tou brothers Sue Vang, aged 32 and Andrew Vang, aged 27, are accused of operating an unlicensed business with Monica Moua, of 51 years, from their home in Sacramento.
The trio purchased stolen catalytic converters from local thieves and shipped them to DG Auto Parts in New Jersey for processing, authorities said.
“The Vang family allegedly sold more than $38 millions of dollars worth of catalytic converters stolen from DG Auto,” the Justice Department said.
An indictment of 40 charges alleging conspiracy to transport stolen catalytic converters, conspiracy to commit money laundering and other charges names the Vang brothers, Moua and six other defendants.
Navin Khanna, also known as Lovin Khanna, aged 39 years old; Tinu Khanna, also known as Gagan Khanna, aged 35 years old; Daniel Dolan, 44; Chi Mo, also known as David Mo, aged 35 years old; Wright Louis Mosley, 50; and Ishu Lakra, aged 24, all from New Jersey, operated branches of DG Auto in New Jersey , said the authorities.
As of October 2019 and as late as last month, according to the indictment, stolen catalytic converters were shipped from Sacramento to New Jersey, and payments were sent via wire transfer from DG Car to the Vang’s business, including several for more than $100,000 dollars.
The suspects were being recorded by confidential informants.
The catalytic converters are a part of the system of a vehicle’s exhaust that reduces the amount of pollutants and toxic gases emitted by the internal combustion engine. The devices contain precious metals such as palladium, platinum, and rhodium in their cores and are often targeted by thieves due to their high value, lack of identifying marks, and relative ease of theft.
Federal authorities estimate that DG Auto sold precious metal powders that processed from the catalytic converters to a refinery of metals for more than $545 million dollars.
Also read:
· The Government seeks to put a stop to the theft of catalytic converters
· Nearly half a million vehicles are stolen in the US in the first half of 2022. In which states has theft increased the most?
Unusual video: in four minutes a part was stolen from a car in Queens, New York