By Shivani
According to the rail operator Union Pacific, dozens of freight trains are broken into on a daily basis in Los Angeles by thieves. The thieves take advantage of train stops to loot the packages bought online.
The found tags belonged to the major US mail order and courier companies like Amazon, Target, UPS and FedEx.These giants are constantly hit by thefts, which has visibly exploded in recent months.
The rail line through Lincoln Heights leads to CSX switching yards and trains often move slowly or stop along the trains. Thieves take advantage of this target-rich environment, using bolt cutters to barge into boxes. Despite the Union Pacific’s police department and LAPD’s efforts to arrest the criminals, the crime rate has increased 160 percent since December 2020. Unfortunately, The criminal activities have seen a rise in terms of assault and armed robberies targeting UP’s employees.
Plenty of crime evidence is found and collected: the offenders are taking items according to their choice and leaving the rest, the discarded COVID test kits, medications and other high social value items are found.
The rail operator Union Pacific in the letter to authorities said, “In October 2021 alone, the increase was 356 percent compared to October 2020.”
According to the figures provided by UP, 90 plus containers are vandalized every day on an average in LA in the last quarter of 2021. The operator estimates that damage of 2021 thefts amounts to $5 million. UP has decided to strengthen the surveillance measures, including the drones and other detection systems. More security staff is recruited for tracks and convoys by the Union to combat the thefts.
