Mexico Oil Thieves Use Camouflaged Trucks to Steal Oil
Tunnels under pipelines and camouflaged trucks, the length Mexico thieves will go to steal oil
Authorities in central Mexico say thieves built a camouflaged truck to transport fuel stolen from government pipelines. Police found a tunnel built by pipeline thieves in the same state of Guanajuato last week.
The discoveries show the sophistication of thieves who drill taps into state-owned pipelines thousands of times every year to steal gasoline and diesel.
The Guanajuato state government said Monday it found a gravel truck in which a huge fuel tank had been welded into the bed, covered by a hatch and a layer of gravel to avoid detection.
Guanajuato prosecutors said that on April 2 they found a 15 meter long tunnel built under fuel pipelines.
The tunnel allowed thieves to drill taps undetected and transport fuel by hoses to a lot where trucks collected stolen fuel.