Exclusive | Inside the explosion of SoCal train robberies: cut brakes, handsaws and tens of millions in loot

Brazen train robbers are increasingly targeting Southern California’s vast rail network to pull off sophisticated heists and quickly traffic their loot — even flaunting their crimes on social media.More than 65,000 train heists occur nationwide each year, with anywhere from a 25% to 40% of the thefts hitting Southern California annually, investigators told The California Post.The value of the bandits’ plunder reaches into the tens to hundreds of millions of dollars, according to sources with knowledge of the crimes.Investigators revealed that tracking the crimes is difficult because they often go unreported, stoking fears that the epidemic could be even worse than imagined.They say the trend is growing and more trains are being hit, as cartel-run crime rings behind the operations grow bolder in their thefts of shoes, clothing, tools and electronics quickly resold at deep discounts online.“We call it shopping,” Supervisor Detective Carlos Monteroso of the LAPD’s Cargo Theft Task Force told the California Post.“The crews break into individual containers until they find what they’re looking for that’s high value.

Then they’ll do their thing.”Insiders working at the Port of Los Angeles have access to computer files with sensitive information about valuable train loads, investigators say, feeding those tips to crime bosses who dispatch their cavalries to remote train tracks.LA has managed the busiest container port in the Western Hemisphere for the past 25 years, with roughly 2.65 million 20-foot containers leaving the port annually via railway.Thefts aren’t always reported because they occur on private railways, investigators say.With Christmas coming and new products making their way to stores for holiday shoppers, the detective said train thefts are set to explode, disrupting supply chains for sought-after holiday presents.Monteroso explained that the thieves are highly organized.“These crews have identified vulnerable points along the trac...