Business Owners Lose Millions In Plastic Recycling Scam

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — It turns out "saving the earth" may be costing local businesses millions of dollars.

KNX 1070's Ron Kilgore reports on a recycling scam that preys on the pallets of warehouses in the City of Industry.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's detectives on Wednesday unveiled warehouses full of stolen plastic containers with trademarked merchandise they have recovered in the past year, representing an estimated $10 million in losses.

"These recyclers are claiming their helping us by recycling, but what they're really doing is buying stolen merchandise, grinding it up, and selling it back to the manufacturers that make our milk cases," said Amos Degroat of Rockview Dairy, just one of the many local business victimized in the scheme.

Investigators said they have several cases pending against Southland recyclers.

While the thieves typically end up getting a fraction of the actual value of the cases, detectives warned the problem has gotten more widespread in recent months.