Lax Prosecution Contributing to LA Cargo Theft Surge, Experts Say

A person carries items collected from the train tracks as a Union Pacific locomotive passes through a section of Union Pacific train tracks littered with thousands of opened boxes and packages stolen from cargo shipping containers targeted by thieves as the trains stop in downtown Los Angeles on Jan. 14, 2022. Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

In recent weeks, national attention became focused on photos and videos showing Union Pacific rail tracks littered with discarded cartons and boxes following organized looting just east of downtown Los Angeles.

Many of the packages that hadn’t been stolen or damaged would head toward Chicago or Canada before they finally reach the doorsteps of their recipients, including one that contained a picture of a family dressed in festive attire.