3 men arrested in multimillion-dollar theft ring of stolen meat across Midwest

(ABC News) – Three Florida men have been arrested for allegedly stealing $9 million worth of frozen meat across the midwestern United States, authorities said Tuesday.

Yoslany Leyva Del Sol, Ledier Machin Andino and Delvis L. Fuentes, all from the Miami area, face charges of money laundering and transportation of stolen goods, according to Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).

The trio are the alleged masterminds behind what HSI described as a Florida-based “highly sophisticated organized criminal enterprise” targeting beef and pork packaging plants in the Midwest.

The investigation into the multimillion-dollar theft ring began in June after several semi-trailers and loads of frozen beef — valued at an estimated $1 million — were stolen in Nebraska’s Lancaster County. The Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office worked with HSI’s Omaha field office to identify approximately 45 thefts that occurred since June 2021 across Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin, totaling $9 million in losses, according to HSI.

Investigators determined that an organized criminal enterprise set up in Miami was responsible for the thefts and, on Oct. 20, identified and arrested three prime suspects — Del Sol, Andino and Fuentes. As the men were taken into custody in Miami, investigators also recovered three tractor trailers with stolen merchandise valued at $550,000, according to HSI.

“This investigation is ongoing and part of the HSI Omaha and Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Task Force,” HSI said in a statement Tuesday, announcing the arrests.