Two people have been charged in connection with an alleged cargo heist that recently took place on the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
Lorenzo Vaduva, 24, and Gabriel Chisoiu, 38, are facing charges of theft, conspiracy, and reckless endangerment in connection with the theft of $287,737 worth of Apple merchandise.
According to Pennsylvania State Police charging documents obtained by ABC27, a truck driver picked up a load of Apple Watches and MacBooks in Carlisle. The load was secured with a bolt seal, and a GPS tracker was installed.
The truck driver made his way to the Pennsylvania Turnpike. After getting onto the Turnpike, a box truck and a sedan went in front of the semi and forced the driver to brake. Another vehicle followed closely behind the semi truck with its headlights off even though it was dark.
When the truck driver pulled off at the Sideling Hill Travel Plaza in Taylor Township, he noticed that the trailer’s seal was broken and that the GPS tracker was unsecured. He said that he had not stopped since picking up the load in Carlisle.
The truck driver contacted Pennsylvania State Police.
Troopers observed opened pallets inside the trailer and were able to obtain dash cam footage from a stationary patrol vehicle showing the victim’s semi driving on the Turnpike with the doors open and items falling out. The video also showed the vehicle with no headlights following closely behind, as well as a white van driving next to the victim’s truck.
Troopers were able to identify the suspect vehicles and tracked them down to a store in Perry County, where they had been abandoned. By using surveillance video from the business, as well as social media, phone records, and with assistance from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, troopers were able to identify Vaduva and Chisoiu as suspects.
The two men were taken into custody and are awaiting a hearing.