NY Pair Accused Of Stealing Cooking Oil From Westport Business

WESTPORT, CT — A pair of Yonkers, NY men were arrested on larceny charges early Friday after Westport police said they stole cooking oil from the back of an unnamed Westport business.

The incident began around 1:15 a.m. when a Westport police officer spotted a vehicle with a defective tail light parked at a closed Westport business. After a computer check, the officer learned that there was no registration record for the vehicle, so he conducted a motor vehicle stop.

"Upon speaking with the occupants of the vehicle, it was observed that there were several tanks containing oil and a large pump within the vehicle," wrote Westport police in a statement. "Oily clothing and shoes were also observed within the vehicle and both occupants, identified as Elmy Sandoval and Steven Caraballo, appeared to be covered in oil."

Another officer arrived at the scene and found that the used cooking oil tank behind business was empty and the lid had been left opened.

"Based on the scene it was apparent that this tank had recently been tampered with and siphoned of its contents without permission from the rightful owner," police said.

At that point, Sandoval, 21, and Caraballo, 18, were taken into custody and charged with sixth-degree larceny and conspiracy.

There is a vibrant black market for used cooking oil, which has been stolen from Westport restaurants in the past.

"During the booking process, one of the arrestees allegedly admitted to having stolen the cooking oil from the business," police said. "Also located during a search of one the suspects was a receipt showing a recent sale of cooking oil for cash."

The two were released on promises to appear in Norwalk Superior Court on Oct. 30.