FALL BRANCH, Tenn. — The Tennessee Highway Patrol said that two stolen commercial box trailers were recovered Wednesday. They were loaded with around $450,000 worth of meals ready to eat, meant for hurricane relief efforts in Louisiana.
A THP sergeant found one stolen box trailer at a Pilot Travel Center off I-81 in Jefferson County. The sergeant located the driver, Antonio Eaddy, from North Carolina and an investigation revealed that the vehicle's identification number had been removed from the trailer, officials said.
A secondary VIN was found which confirmed that the trailer had been listed as stolen in the National Crime Information Center. It belonged to Conley Trucking Company out of South Carolina, officials said.
A trooper responded to the scene and during his investigation, the cargo was identified as belonging to FEMA. It was filled with 30,780 pre-packaged MREs headed to Louisiana to help hurricane relief efforts. The value of the first trailer was over $200,000, according to a release.
Officials said they continued investigating the incident and found a second stolen trailer at a Pilot Travel Center off I-40 in Cumberland County. Troopers confirmed that it was stolen from Florence County, South Carolina, according to a release.
The driver of the second trailer has not been located, officials said.
Eaddy was arrested without incident and charged with felony theft over $250,000, driving on a suspended license and criminal impersonation, according to officials.
Investigators said they notified all respective owners.
Officials said that rebuilding can take months after Hurricane Laura, a Category 4 storm, made landfall. It made landfall with 150 mph winds and a storm surge that officials said was as high as 15 feet in some areas.