A New Way to Guzzle Gas

In response to the rise in fuel-related crime, authorities are becoming more vigilant. Earlier this week firefighters in Oak Ridge, Tenn., noticed two trucks driving by with 55-gallon drums in their beds that reeked of fuel. Suspicious, they alerted the police, who went to investigate and found that the trucks were operated by two brothers who were in possession of nine 55-gallon drums, one 30-gallon drum and a gas tank from an old truck, all filled with different grades of fuel, according to police chief David Beams. The brothers told the police they had purchased the fuel from a local Phillips 66 station with a credit card. But when the cops contacted the station, the owner said no such transaction had occurred and that, in fact, he was missing 1,100 gallons. Police are now investigating the brothers' possible connection to that and other fuel crimes in the area. They may be only two culprits among a growing army, but these days, every drop of rescued fuel counts.

© 2008