Big-time thieves are stepping up their game by purchasing haulage companies, allowing them to masquerade as legitimate truckers to make off with tons of stolen goods, as uncovered by the BBC.
One shocking example involves the purchase of haulage companies using the identity of a deceased individual. After acquiring the company, these criminals employed the firm as a subcontractor for an unsuspecting transportation company in the UK. A serious full-load heist occurred when a manufacturer filled one of the subcontractor’s trucks, only for it to vanish without a trace.
Alison—her real name changed for privacy—operates a transport business in the Midlands and was targeted by these impostors. She expressed how astonishing it is that a gang can pull off such a blatant operation against a business.
This audacious tactic represents just one of the stratagems criminals are using to exploit haulage firms responsible for transporting retail goods across the country. National statistics reveal that retail cargo theft in the UK soared to £111 million last year, up from just £68 million in 2023.
New footage collected by the BBC shows criminals actually breaking into delivery trucks while drivers are stuck in traffic, sabotaging locks, and stealing entire trailers filled with merchandise.
Drivers often have to take much-needed rest stops inside their trucks, and many report waking up to discover that thieves had slashed the curtains of their vehicles with the intention of stealing valuable cargo—ranging from designer fashion items to electronics.
John Redfern, the former security manager of a top supermarket, pointed out the consumer impact, stating, “You should care because it hits your wallet”; as theft continues, retail prices will inevitably rise.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council emphasized the increasing sophistication and organization of these freight crimes and called for collaboration with the logistics industry to combat this concerning trend.
Fraud targeting haulage firms is becoming alarmingly common in the UK, as reported by the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service. Richard Smith, head of the Road Haulage Association, stated: “Our industry is under attack,” revealing that daily incidents involve organized crime groups monopolizing haulage services, deploying advanced schemes to evade authorities.
The fraudulent transactions observed by the BBC appear to parallel tactics detailed by Europol in Europe, where struggling yet legitimate transport companies get bought by criminal enterprises, which swiftly exploit them—taking a load and disappearing.
As for Alison, the investigation’s follow-up led police to explore similar crimes occurring at various locations in the UK.
Earlier this year, Alison collaborated with a smaller transport company—often relying on partner companies when her own trucks were occupied. She recounted the process seemed legitimate: the subcontractor’s insurance was confirmed, and all licenses were in place. A truck successfully arrived at a manufacturing point, packing necessary DIY inventory before it essentially vanished.
However, in a twist, the truck being used had been fitted with counterfeit plates. Stealing a precious £75,000 worth of goods, Alison only discovered the threatening scenario when the destination company contacted her regarding the elusive delivery.
Identity Fraud Unraveled
But who exactly was behind this theft? Our investigation trailed back through a dead man’s identity, leading to a mysterious Romanian individual and a glamorous £150,000 Lamborghini Urus purchased with the stolen funds.
The company involved, Zus Transport, had recently changed ownership just a month before the actual theft, and there’s no indication previous owners were complicit. However, the investigation discovered that the new ownership was a bank transfer made by a UK-based Romanian listed under the name Ionut Calin, known idiosyncratically as Robert.
Unraveling a web of five haulage companies, it was identified that Mr. Calin—who passed away in November 2024—had his identity misappropriated to acquire multiple transportation firms posthumously.
While there wasn’t evidence that Calin himself was involved in criminal activities, multiple tributes celebrated him on social media as a supportive community member in the trucking arena.
Specifics revealed the former proprietors parted with their firms not directly to Mr. Calin but to a character identified as “Benny.”
Investigating leads linking to the director of Zus Transport dove deeper, revealing a Romanian woman whose scant biography eventually revealed a phone number showcasing a picture of a young lady with a different name, flaunting the very Lamborghini linked to these shady deals.
Presenting images collected from social media to a previous owner, he identified Benjamin Mustata as the “Benny” who negotiated the deal prior.
Missed connection with Mr. Mustata’s identity checks emerged at an address in Coventry, where he had reportedly disappeared. Subsequently tracked to that same address, Mr. Mustata vandalously dismissed inquiries about his endeavors with Zus Transport.
Despite admitting his acquisition of Zus Transport, Mustata insisted he acted on behalf of kin and claimed distancing from accountability regarding stolen goods by opportunist wannabe-truckers working in the shadows.
Stressing ownership claims and diminishing responsibility, he refused any wrongdoing but insisted bonds formed through credentials were manipulated, applying his name and invoking another’s memory.
Analyst Arun Chauhun reflected on investigative findings, designating the targeted implosion involving subterfuge, utilizing dubious identities for sinister transactional matters as a misguided outlook masked under insurance management—damaging real lives crushed by thief-driven businesses.
Labour MP Rachel Taylor, hearing marketplace grievances throughout her constituency where many residents earn a living in supply logistics, commented compellingly on the challenges criminals pose towards truckers: sophisticated theft is too often brushed aside unrecognized, demanding a proactive combined law enforcement approach to change the narrative.
The NPCC’s newly formed unit aims to effectively counteract this exploitation beginning next year, pushing remains as logistics managers like Alison emphasis dire implications awaiting ceaseless cycles of ultra-efficient theft, stressing, “we lose sleep over it,”; precisely making barely sustainable livelihoods for haulage operators swiftly dire.
