A Lithuanian driver won a transport order to Germany via a digital freight exchange. He was supposed to collect the goods from the supplier, but the situation seemed suspicious to the entrepreneur.
The driver’s email address differed from the official address of the transport company. The supplier prophylactically contacted the police, suspecting that he was dealing with a so-called fake transporter, according to an official communiqué from the Dutch police.
“The driver pretends to be an employee of a well-known transport company, but as soon as he picks up the goods, he flees. This form of crime is a serious problem in the transport sector. Enormous amounts of goods are stolen in this way,” the police explain the modus operandi of the fake haulier.
The shipper’s fears were confirmed. The driver, a 24-year-old Lithuanian, had a false identity card and driving licence, and the truck and trailer had false number plates.
The 24-year-old was arrested, tried in a summary trial, and sentenced to eight weeks in prison, including two weeks unconditional and six weeks suspended for two years. The lorry and trailer were secured.
Cargo theft in Italy
Yesterday, however, Italian carabinieri arrested a man accused of stealing goods from a company in Gussola in the province of Cremona. The man had acted in a similar manner to the Lithuanian captured by the Dutch, claiming to be the driver of a haulage company that actually existed but had no connection to the crime. It was, however, known to the shipper because it had already carried out orders for him before. The man concluded a contract with the client by email and picked up the load in Casalmaggiore, but the goods did not arrive at their destination. The customer, on the other hand, discovered that neither the vehicle nor its driver belonged to the responsible company, reports the Italian transport website trasportoeuropa.it.
During the investigation, the Gussola carabinieri obtained surveillance footage that clearly shows both the fraudster’s truck and his face. Cooperation with carabinieri from Bologna revealed that the man had committed a number of such thefts in northern Italy. As a result, it was possible to identify the suspect, a 53-year-old man accused of fraud.
More and more fraud
According to R+V, a subsidiary of German insurance company Kravag, there has been a significant increase in the number of cases of fraud by bogus hauliers in recent times. The company indicates that metal transports are particularly popular with thieves.
However, you can protect yourself from theft by following a number of rules. First and foremost, great care should be taken when choosing a carrier, especially if the business relationship began at a freight exchange. For further tips on how to protect yourself from cargo theft, see our material on this topic.