Alleged beef bandits apprehended in Northeast Philadelphia

Three men were apprehended earlier this week in Northeast Philadelphia while attempting to steal thousands of dollars worth of beef, authorities said Wednesday.

Officers arrested the trio early Tuesday after they had begun removing 1,600 pounds of meat from a locked tractor trailer that was parked on the 7300 block of Edmund Street, near Cottman Avenue, in Holmesburg, prosecutors said.

The masked suspects were allegedly spotted breaking into the trailer and carrying 25 cases to their van. The beef is valued at $7,000, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, which is handling the cases.

“This was tenacious investigative work that involved collaboration between law enforcement agencies to stop high-value thefts from parked tractor trailers,” Attorney General Michelle Henry said in a statement Wednesday.

Henry’s team said the investigation was part of “Operation Beef Bandit,” a law enforcement collaboration to catch cargo thieves.

Earlier this month, New Jersey State Police made the initiative’s first arrests, apprehending four Philadelphia men while they allegedly stole boxes of meat from a trailer stopped in a service area along the New Jersey Turnpike.

Detectives believe crews in the region are responsible for dozens of thefts, mainly targeting meat, seafood and alcohol, NJSP said.

In July, Philadelphia police came forward to say there had been nine successful cargo heists and two attempts over the period of less than a month.

The three men arrested this week – Douglas Mathis, 36, Tariq Duncan, 31, and Jamir Scott, 25 – were each charged with being a member of an organized crime ring, in addition to conspiracy, theft and related offenses. All were jailed on $200,000 bail, of which they must post 10% to be released.

Attorneys for Mathis, Duncan and Scott did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday afternoon.