CARGO THEFT * Canada - RCMP preach awareness for combating it

Cargo theft from commercial trucks is a billion dollar business in North America; and that's just the incidents that get reported

Banff,ALB,CAN -Today's Trucking -5 May 2008: -- ... While law enforcement officers across North America are trying to combat the problem, Sgt. Rob Ruiters of the RCMP, openly admits they cannot do it alone... "We need partnerships with the industry to succeed," says Ruiters, during the recent Alberta Motor Transport Association annual management conference. "We're already doing it, but we need it to continue and for carriers to monitor and police themselves"... According to a study from Volpe National Transportation Systems Center in Cambridge, Mass., $15 to $30 billion of cargo was stolen in 2006. When you apply law enforcement's rule of thumb that property and cargo thefts are only reported 40 percent of the time, the amount could be inflated to as much as $75 billion... The National Pipeline-Convoy-Program was launched in Canada in 1993, which aims to improve conversational and awareness skills of officers to detect possible criminals during routine traffic stops... Dealing with the trucking industry has been a problem for law enforcement in the past, because of a lack of understanding. By building an understanding among law enforcement what a typical legal truck and its driver should be doing, officers have a better chance of catching illegal activity... "I'm not a CMV expert and we're not trying to be," notes Ruiters. "We're just aware of commonalities of criminals. It's not only drugs but it will also combat stolen cargo and impaired drivers. We want the same as you, which is to get the people off the road who shouldn't be there."... (Picture: Keep an eye out when trucking in Brampton, Ruiters says)


* Truck Carrying Ton of Copper Hijacked

Montreal,QC,CAN -The Gazette newspaper/UPI/Layover -May 6, 2008: -- A tractor-trailer carrying 1 ton of copper east of Montreal was hijacked at a highway rest stop and later was recovered empty, police said... An unidentified driver told him two French-speaking men broke into his cab Sunday night and told him they wanted the copper and said he wouldn't be hurt if he cooperated, reported... They put the driver in a minivan drove and eventually left him in an industrial park unharmed, police said... Montreal police Constable Olivier Lapointe with the price of copper rising, thieves have begun targeting construction sites in the city for wiring and pipes. Police didn't say what form the stolen truckload of copper was in, the newspaper said...