Fake company may have vanished with $350K of Tenn. beef

Authorities in Grainger County, Tennessee, are investigating the theft of 80,000 pounds of beef worth $350,000 from Southeastern Provision LLC, after an allegedly fraudulent trucking company, “List Trucking Sales,” picked up the shipments and disappeared.

The theft occurred from a meat processing facility near Bean Station and was discovered when two shipments bound for Kentucky and Michigan never arrived at their destinations.

According to the Grainger County Sheriff’s Office, Southeastern Provision had contracted with a logistics provider that subcontracted the deliveries to List Trucking Sales. However, investigators found that all information associated with List Trucking Sales was false and unverifiable. The company’s dispatcher ceased communication, and identification for both the drivers and the company had not been properly verified before loading the meat.

According to 6News, East Tennesseans may recognize the name Southeastern Provision from a contentious 2018 Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid, during which nearly 100 Latino workers were detained. A lawsuit alleged that agents engaged in racial profiling, conducted illegal searches, and made unlawful arrests. In 2023, a federal judge approved a settlement awarding the victims more than $1 million.

Authorities have not yet identified suspects, and the investigation is ongoing.

This case is part of a growing trend of cargo thefts in the trucking industry, where criminals exploit supply chain vulnerabilities using fake businesses. The stolen beef’s whereabouts remain unknown.

Earlier this month, thieves also attempted to steal beef from a cargo truck in Philadelphia while the truck driver slept. Last year, as part of “Operation Beef Bandit,” the Philadelphia Police, Attorney General Agents, and New Jersey State Police began investigating a series of beef thefts.

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