Seized catalytic converter thefts from Operation Heavy Metallic in 2022.
Courtesy: Division of Homeland Safety
A New Jersey man pleaded responsible in Oklahoma federal court docket to main a massive theft ring that stole catalytic converters from autos and offered them for greater than $600 million in whole to a refinery that extracted precious metals contained within the gadgets.
The defendant, Navin Khanna, is the declaration individual to plead responsible in reference to the ring, which was uncovered after police in Tulsa, Oklahoma found almost 130 catalytic converters within the mattress of a truck they stopped in Could 2021, after an off-duty officer reported suspicions concerning the car.
That cease got here throughout a nationwide surge of thefts in catalytic converters, that are a part of the exhaust programs of cars, and which comprise valuable metals together with platinum, palladium and rhodium.
The Justice Division stated that Khanna, 41, on Monday admitted to being the proprietor and operator of D.G. Auto Components in New Jersey, and from Could 2020 by way of October 2022, “he conspired with others to buy and transport giant portions of stolen catalytic converters from Oklahoma, Texas, and different states to New Jersey.”
In a plea agreement filed in U.S. District Court docket in Tulsa, Khanna stated, “After buying these catalytic converters, I resold most of them to Dowa Metals & Mining, a metallic refinery, which might then extract the powdered valuable metals.”
CNBC has requested remark from Dowa Metals, whose web site says that its Burlington, New Jersey, facility “has performed a key position in converter recycling in America since 2016.”
Dowa Metals is a subsidiary of Japan-based Dowa Holdings Co., which is a part of the Nikkei 225 inventory market index. The corporate has not been charged in reference to Khanna’s case.
Khanna pleaded responsible to at least one depend of conspiracy to obtain, possess, and get rid of stolen items in interstate commerce and 5 counts of cash laundering, stemming from his participation within the stolen items scheme.
The Holmdel, New Jersey resident faces a most doable sentence of between 14 years and 17-and-a-half years in jail.
An legal professional for Khanna didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark from CNBC.
Luis Benitez installs one in all 4 new catalytic converters onto a Chevrolet Silverado at Johnny Franklin’s Muffler on July 11, 2022 in San Rafael, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Photographs
As a part of his plea settlement, Khanna agreed to give up nearly $4 million in money and 11 luxurious autos, amongst them “Lamborghini, two Mercedes AMGs, two Ferraris, a McLaren, a Porsche, a Ford F650 Truck, and a BMW M3,” the Justice Division stated in a press release.
Authorities additionally seized “actual property properties, high-end jewellery, gold bars, and over 200 pallets of catalytic converters … throughout the execution of search warrants at Khanna’s properties,” stated the DOJ.
“Khanna’s theft ring took benefit of hard-working residents within the Northern District of Oklahoma by stealing catalytic converters, rendering the car unusable,” U.S. Legal professional Clint Johnson for the Northern District of Oklahoma stated in a press release.
“I want to thank the Tulsa Police Division and our legislation enforcement companions for his or her tireless efforts in bringing this mindless crime to justice,” stated Johnson.
13 different individuals have pleaded responsible to roles within the converter theft scheme and are awaiting sentencing, the Justice Division stated.