Using faked documents to take off with trailer-loads of goods is a growing concern in Florida, though for now ports have proven to be less vulnerable, said Cpl. David Vincent of the Florida Highway Patrol.
But products moved away from port facilities to secondary staging areas, as happens in Jacksonville, can become targets, said Vincent, who is with the commercial vehicle enforcement unit of the Highway Patrol's Bureau of Investigations. He didn't recall any cases in Jacksonville, though that doesn't mean the ports or outside terminals are not vulnerable. Trends change over time.
"I would suspect there would be some infiltration," he said.
JaxPort spokeswoman Nancy Rubin said access to the port is guided by federal mandates. She said customers who lease facilities at the port have not reported cargo losses there.
JaxPort, she said, works with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to protect against the thefts.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office is part of a statewide task force established in 2002 that deals with cargo thefts and includes sheriff's offices, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the FBI. As soon as thefts are discovered by trucking or companies, a notification system broadcasts the information to law enforcement, inspection stations and state transportation officers.
Vincent said companies, the state and trucking associations are warning their employees about what to watch for and to increase the use of thumbprint and photographic identification to validate drivers who show up to make pickups.
The problem is statewide, he said, with hot spots including the Interstate 4 corridor from Daytona Beach to Tampa, but noted the greatest number of stolen rigs and trailers are found abandoned in South Florida.
"We have recoveries daily of trailers and rigs," he said.
