Used cooking oil stolen in Oneonta

Jun. 28—A biodiesel production company reported the theft of used cooking oil from two restaurants in Oneonta and two in Delaware County during the last five weeks.

Buffalo Biodiesel Inc. of Tonawanda reported the thefts to municipal police departments and county sheriff's offices, according to letters detailing the incidents which the company sent to the Daily Star.

Law enforcement officials did not immediately respond to requests for reports of the thefts Wednesday.

Biodiesel is produced from vegetable oils, mainly soybean oil, and animal fats. Used cooking oil, also known as yellow grease, is bought and collected by Buffalo Biodiesel from restaurants.

The company stated in the letters that "the theft of used cooking oil not only harms Buffalo Biodiesel Inc. for tens of millions of dollars each year — it also directly harms the individual restaurant owners who sell the oil to us."

The letter further stated that the company is "aware of multiple, publicly reported incidents throughout the areas we service."

The company sent letters to Oneonta Police and the Oswego County District Attorney regarding the two incidents in Oneonta, and Deposit Police — under the Broome County Sheriff's Office — the Delaware County Sheriff and the Delaware County District Attorney regarding the incidents in Deposit and Downsville, as well as the State Police headquarters in Albany, the state Attorney General's office, the director of the FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the United States Attorney.

Buffalo Biodiesel reported a similar theft in September from Ming Moon Restaurant in Stamford.

The letters stated that company truck drivers who were picking up the used cooking oil reported the incidents on June 18 at Jay's Place at 3200 Chestnut St., and Dante's Pizza at 416 Chestnut St., in Oneonta and the Old Schoolhouse Inn and Restaurant at 28218 State Route 206 in Downsville, Delaware County.

Another theft was reported May 22 at Big M Supermarket at 156 Front St. in Deposit, Delaware County.

The thefts may not have occurred on those dates — they were just reported on those dates.

Buffalo Biodiesel provides containers on site for customers to store their used cooking oil. The four establishments hit recently all had 350-gallon storage vats.

The storage vat at Jay's Place sits out of the line of sight of either of the restaurant's doors, so it's unclear when the theft occurred, owner Jason Sperano said Wednesday.

He doesn't make a lot of money from selling the used cooking oil, about $100 a year, but that he used to pay $35 to $40 a month to have it hauled away.

"I hope it stops," Sperano said of the thefts.

According to Buffalo Biodiesel's internal theft investigation form, the theft from Jay's Place left only 20 percent of the oil in the tank. The thieves broke the lock bar and the seal on the storage vat.

At Dante's Pizza, no damage was reported, just the oil theft that left 20 percent in tank. At the Old Schoolhouse, damage to the seal was reported and theft of about 50 percent of the oil. At Big M, a lock was reported missing and oil theft that left only 10 percent in the tank.

No cameras captured the thefts, nor were witnesses reported.

Mike Mulla, an investigator hired by Buffalo Biodiesel to combat the thefts, said Wednesday that the company asks its suppliers to schedule a pickup when their vat is about 75 percent full. The company then sends a vacuum truck within two to three days. Mulla said that Buffalo Biodiesel drivers are uniformed and drive branded trucks.

"There's no mistaking that they come from a professional outfit," he said.

The thieves use rental or unlabeled box trucks and pumps that can be bought from big box home improvement stores.

Buffalo Biodiesel serves 14 states and has 21,000 accounts, but the majority of thefts occur in the downstate areas of New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

Law enforcement has made arrests in oil theft cases, but the problem is that the charge is petty larceny — a misdemeanor which is often dismissed or reduced to a violation.

The company has lobbied state legislators to increase the severity of the crime, Mulla said.

In the meantime, he encouraged people to be vigilant and look out for box trucks, and the police to conduct more patrols.