Train thieves, raiding as many as 90 Union Pacific railroad cargo containers per day, have left Los Angeles train tracks blanketed in debris after pilfering goods worth thousands upon thousands of dollars.
As horrific mass-crime sprees continue across California, downtown Los Angeles looks more each day like a third-world country than a modern, prosperous, sprawling metropolis.
Theft on the rails has cost Union Pacific $5 million in damages, and forced companies such as UPS and FedEx to consider alternate routes that divert the rail line altogether in an attempt to circumvent the crime that has hurt their business and customers.
Union Pacific, the country’s second-largest railroad company, vital to the West Coast railway and the movement of goods nationwide, is considering changes to operations to avoid Los Angeles County, says Adrian Guerrero, the company’s general director of policy and partnerships, corporate relations.
Guerrero would later point out that those committing crimes who are caught and charged will end up with token fines, plead guilty to minor misdemeanor charges such as trespassing, and be released back into the streets within 24 hours. Such is the disturbing trend under “progressive” leaders.
Far-left Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón’s choice not to enforce the law is justified under the guise of social justice “reforms,” racial equity, and reducing racial disparity. Yet in reality, Gascón and others like him are not locking away criminals because such justice would be political suicide for them.
In a letter dated December 20, 2021 to District Attorney Gascón, Guerrero described the thieving as a “spiraling crisis of organized and opportunistic criminal rail theft.” He called out Gascón’s fanatical approach to achieving his “social justice goals” that allow for the abandonment of holding criminals accountable.
What They Stole
Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore confirmed in late January that firearms were among the items stolen from the cargo containers, in addition to electronics, designer clothes and accessories, housewares, and much, much more.
As reported by NBC News, “more than 80 newly manufactured guns were among items stolen from the freight trains,” including “36 pistols and 46 semi-automatic shotguns.” Only two weapons have been recovered thus far, reported the outlet.
To the L.A. Police Commission, Chief Moore raised concern for increased violence in the city as a result of the thefts, stating that “people were capitalizing on the transport of these containers with having little or no policing or security services there [in the downtown area of Lincoln Heights].”
Yet Guerrero has long requested increased policing and plead for the revision of “soft” law-enforcement policies for theft and burglary.
Union Pacific Pressures L.A. County
“Since December 2020, UP has experienced an over 160 percent increase in criminal rail theft,” wrote Guerrero in his letter to Gascón. From October 2020-2021, train burglaries were up an incredible 356 percent.
Guerrero stressed “increased assaults and armed robberies” on Union Pacific employees, in addition to “over 100 arrests” of criminals vandalizing company property and cargo trains, noting that “UP [Union Pacific] had not been contacted for any court proceedings.”
In Lincoln Heights, where the majority of the theft is occurring, rows of homeless encampments are situated close to the rail. It is unclear why this section of track has little to zero security from either Los Angeles County law enforcement or Union Pacific staff that would stop thieves from hopping onto a moving boxcar and throwing items from the container or breaking into the containers while the train is stopped.
“It’s like the Wild West out here,” said a man by the name of John Rodriguez, who reportedly lives near the Union Pacific line and was featured in a piece in the far-left New Yorker magazine titled “The Great Train Robbery Redux” by writer Antonia Hitchens.
Hitchens reports that “among the ripped-up packages, Rodriguez has found wedding photos that were en route to newlyweds (‘I still have a few of them — matrimony means something to me,’ he said) as well as firefighter’s helmets, baby strollers, crates of Minute Maid orange juice, boxes of bedding from Brooklinen, and an urn of human remains.”
“They’ll leave behind things that are too big,” Rodriguez informed. “There’s part of a washing machine — too heavy to carry, or you’d have to trolley it. I’ve seen entire motorcycles.” He continued, “They’ll leave behind animals — exotic birds. And I’ve literally found gems. It’s like dumpster diving.”
In an effort to combat the thieving, Union Pacific announced they have “increased the number of special agents, drones, specialized fencing and trespass detection systems.”
Gascón Tries to Derail the Facts
In response to Guerrero’s concerns, DA Gascón wrote a letter dismissive of the organization’s claims, arguing that the city had filed charges for “55% of the cases presented,” which included “both felony and misdemeanor offenses alleging burglary, theft, and receiving stolen property.”
The DA then took Union Pacific to task, stating that the company “does little to secure or lock trains and has significantly decreased law enforcement staffing.” He continued, “we can ensure that appropriate cases are filed and prosecuted; however, my Office is not tasked with keeping your sites secure and the District Attorney alone cannot solve the major issues facing your organization.”
On January 21, the same day Gascón wrote his response, Democrat California Governor Gavin Newsom appeared with workers from Union Pacific, UPS, and Caltrans (California Department of Education) in a joint cleanup effort along the L.A. tracks.
“We’re stepping things up, and we’re not condoning what happened here,” said Newsom during the press conference. “We need to hold people accountable, and we need to do better helping each other.”
Guerrero said that the cleanup was “a focus of partnership in action.” The New American reached out to Union Pacific for clarification, but as of this writing has not received a response.
Tracking the “Decarceration” Movement
Are Californians finally reaching their tipping point? Are these train robberies just another example of extreme criminal-justice reforms that refuse to hold people accountable for criminal behaviors? Former Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley believes so. Cooley, who served the city from 2000 to 2012, a time when L.A. saw its lowest crime rates on record, is stepping back into the spotlight to help lead the second recall effort against the radical Gascón.
“[Crime] was the lowest in 60 years, when I was the district attorney,” said Cooley in a recent interview on the Ann and Phelim Scoop podcast. “The reason [for such low crime] is the determinant sentence law, which was then the law and was working very, very well from the standpoint of law enforcement arresting bad guys … prosecutors doing their job by prosecuting the bad guys according to the law, and judges doing their job by sentencing according to the law.… The system was working.”
Cooley traces the deterioration of the California justice system back to 2011, with the passage of Assembly Bill 109, signed by then-governor Jerry Brown, which shifted the responsibility of housing felons who have committed nonviolent offenses from state prisons to the counties.
Then came Prop 47, written by Gascón, reportedly supported by George Soros, which reduced penalties across the board for a variety of theft offenses and reduced every hard-core drug possession charge from a felony to a misdemeanor.
And then there is Prop 57, which created a huge step toward wiping out determinant sentencing law, said Cooley, “because it changed when people became eligible for parole and disregarded sentencing enhancements that have been opposed by the court.”
Crime in California is on the rise. Drug use is up; homelessness is rampant. Massive theft and gruesome, senseless murders occur daily. Residents seeking change to policies will have to vote “yes” to recalling radical leaders such as Gascón, whom Cooley says is a “decarceration” district attorney, meaning Gascón doesn’t want people to go to jail. His policies are destroying lives along with the once-great city of Los Angeles.
Masked bandits may receive a mere slap on the wrist for looting trains and stealing sometimes irreplaceable possessions such as urns containing a loved one’s ashes. But be careful not to wear a “Let’s Go Brandon” face mask on a Spirit airlines flight. You might be kicked off, arrested and charged!
