Thieves stole $150,000 in beef from a South Philadelphia tractor-trailer while two drivers slept in the cab on Memorial Day. This bold theft marks another hit in the city’s growing wave of food cargo crimes.
The drivers had stopped their truck on Warfield Street’s 1400 block at 4:30 p.m. Monday. Next morning at 5:45, they found their cargo stripped bare: 10 full pallets plus half a pallet of beef gone without a trace.
The truck’s loud engine and freezer unit masked the crime in progress. “The trailer’s engine and freezer were running throughout the night, so the driver did not hear anyone go inside,” police told NBC Philadelphia.
This brazen theft joins a string of similar strikes across Philadelphia since last year. Criminals took 400 beef cases worth $15,000 from a truck on South 63rd Street in July 2024. Just weeks after, bandits struck again on South Lawrence Street, this time targeting a tuna shipment.
Law enforcement caught a break in September 2024. Through “Operation Beef Bandit,” New Jersey State Police caught four men from Philadelphia who had been stealing meat, seafood, and alcohol from trucks at turnpike rest stops.
Philadelphia police continue investigating the Memorial Day incident. With no arrests made, they’ve asked the public to call 215-686-8477 with any tips about the crime.
The city saw several major heists in 2024. Thieves snatched $10,000 in tuna during August. They struck again in April, taking $30,000 worth of snow crab. Earlier hits targeted bourbon and fish deliveries from trucks in northeast Philadelphia.
