Two stolen trailers loaded with food bound for Hurricane Laura relief efforts in Louisiana were recovered late last month, and one man was arrested in connection with one of the thefts.
Tennessee Highway Patrol officers on Sunday, Aug. 30, located the two stolen trailers that contained a total of $450,000 worth of Meals Ready to Eat belonging to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
A statement from the THP said Sergeant Bobby Bullington located a stolen commercial box trailer belonging to Conley Trucking Company of South Carolina at a Pilot Travel Center off Interstate 81 in Jefferson County northeast of Knoxville. Bullington also located the driver, Antonio Eaddy, from North Carolina. The THP said its investigation revealed the vehicle identification number plate had been removed from the trailer. A secondary VIN was found which confirmed that the trailer was listed in the National Crime Information Center as stolen.
The cargo of 30,780 pre-packaged individual MREs was valued at over $200,000. Eaddy was arrested without incident and charged with Class A Felony theft over $250,000, driving on a suspended license, and criminal impersonation, according to the THP
The THP said a second stolen trailer was located at a Pilot Travel Center off Interstate 40 in Cumberland County west of Knoxville. The driver of this vehicle has not yet been located, according to the THP.
THP said its investigation is ongoing.
