Latest news with #DGAuto
Epoch Times
08-05-2025
- Epoch Times
California Man Gets 12 Years for Role in $38 Million Catalytic Converter Theft Ring
A 33-year-old Sacramento man was Tou Sue Vang was given a 12-year sentence Tuesday for his part in a family-run theft ring, according to acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith. Prosecutors say Vang, along with his brother Andrew Vang and mother Monica Moua, bought stolen catalytic converters from local thieves and sold them to a buyer in New Jersey for more than $38 million. 'This defendant led a network of criminals that hurt thousands of innocent car owners,' Beckwith said in a statement Tuesday. 'This case represents the kind of far-reaching investigation that federal, state, and local law enforcement partners can do when working together.' Tou Vang, Andrew Vang, and Moua pleaded Catalytic converters are part of a vehicle's exhaust system that reduces toxic gas and pollutants from the engine. Stealing them has become popular nationwide because the converters are easy to remove, have no identifying markings, and can fetch more than $1,000 each, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento. Related Stories 6/7/2024 5/26/2024 Buyers want the precious metals inside, including platinum, palladium, and rhodium, the last of which is more valuable per ounce than gold. In 2022, about Vehicles most often Tou Vang's prosecution is part of a nationwide crackdown on catalytic converter theft. His case includes his brother and mother, and 12 other defendants from New Jersey. Deputy Jaime Moran from the L.A. County Sheriff's Department engraves a catalytic converter with a traceable number in City of Industry, Calif., on July 14, 2021. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images Federal prosecutors say the defendants operated DG Auto and purchased the stolen converters from California. Tou Vang and his family operated mostly from their private residences and storage units, according to federal officials. They did not have a scrapyard or a valid business license. Some of the shipments Tou Vang made to DG Auto weighed over 1,000 pounds and contained a single type of high-value catalytic converter, such as the ones found in Toyota Prius cars. Tou Vang and his family allegedly used the funds received from the New Jersey defendants to withdraw from bank accounts they controlled to buy more stolen catalytic converters. Prosecutors claim Tou Vang spent the proceeds of converter sales to fund a lavish lifestyle. He allegedly purchased a five-acre multi-home complex in Rio Linda for $1.235 million in cash; over a dozen motor vehicles, including two Teslas and two Sea Doos; and another home in Sacramento. As part of Tou Vang's sentence, he forfeited more than $150,000 in cash, 13 motor vehicles, four personal watercraft, jewelry, real estate, and other property, according to federal prosecutors. 'This takedown is the first of its kind in the nation and a major step forward in dismantling a catalytic converter theft ring,' said FBI Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel of the Sacramento Field Office.
San Francisco Chronicle
08-05-2025
- Automotive
- San Francisco Chronicle
California man led $38M catalytic converter theft ring, lived lavishly off stolen parts
A Northern California man who spent millions on luxury homes, Teslas and personal watercraft was sentenced Tuesday to 12 years in federal prison for running a nationwide catalytic converter theft ring that prosecutors say netted $38 million. According to court documents, Tou Sue Vang, 33, used proceeds from the illicit sale of thousands of catalytic converters to bankroll a lavish lifestyle, including the $1.2 million cash purchase of a five-acre multi-home compound in Rio Linda, another property in Sacramento, and over a dozen vehicles — among them two Teslas and two Sea-Doo watercraft. Federal authorities say Vang was the ringleader of a group that trafficked stolen catalytic converters from California to New Jersey, where a metal refinery extracted and sold their precious metals. 'This defendant led a network of criminals that hurt thousands of innocent car owners,' said Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith. Vang, his brother Andrew Vang, and their mother Monica Moua admitted to buying the stolen parts from local thieves — known in court documents as 'cutters' — and shipping them to DG Auto, a New Jersey company run by brothers Navin and Tinu Khanna, who have also been charged in the case. Some shipments weighed more than 1,000 pounds and contained high-value converters, such as those from the Toyota Prius. Authorities say the family operated out of homes and storage units, without a valid business license, using falsified shipping manifests and bank withdrawals to launder profits. 'This takedown is the first of its kind in the nation,' FBI Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel said. 'The group is tied to an estimated $38 million in losses.'
