U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced that a federal grand jury has indicted six individuals for their involvement in a conspiracy to steal and sell used restaurant cooking oil. The defendants, Guodeng Chen, Didi Huang, Fangfang Yan from Pittsford, NY, and Ruimao Yang, Yan Han, Wen Xiao Zhang from New York, NY, face charges of conspiracy to transport and sell stolen goods across state lines. This charge carries a potential maximum sentence of five years in prison.
Chen, Huang, and Yan are also charged with the transportation and sale of stolen goods in interstate commerce. These charges could result in up to ten years in prison if they are convicted.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan K. McGuire explained that the group allegedly executed multiple thefts of used cooking oil from various restaurants around Monroe County. This oil can be processed into biodiesel fuel and resold at prices ranging from $4.00 to $5.00 per gallon.
According to the indictment and previous complaints, Yang, Han, and Zhang transported trucks to these restaurants where Zhang would extract used cooking oil from collection tanks outside the establishments. The stolen oil was then taken to a warehouse managed by Chen, Huang, and Yan where it was collected and stored with Han's assistance.
The accused trio—Chen, Huang, and Yan—are said to have sold this oil to a broker who facilitated its transport across state lines into Pennsylvania for refining purposes. On two occasions in April 2022—April 8th and April 28th—the defendants reportedly shipped approximately 45,000 pounds of stolen cooking oil each time from Western New York to Erie, Pennsylvania receiving over $5,000 per shipment.
This case stems from an investigation conducted by the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office led by Sheriff Todd Baxter; Homeland Security Investigations under Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan; as well as the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Division headed by Acting Executive Special Agent Harry Chavis in New York Field Office.
Authorities remind that charges against any defendant are merely accusations until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.