3 Newark Men Charged With Cooking Oil Thefts

NEWARK, NJ — Authorities arrested three Newark men this week after a month-long investigation into a string of cooking oil thefts from a Middletown sushi restaurant, police say.

The oil was allegedly stolen from Sono Sushi on Route 35 in Middletown, according to police. Carmelo Romero of North Arlington, and Renaldo Ramirez, Edgar Hernandez and Alfredo Llivicota, all of Newark, were charged with theft, possession of burglary tools, and conspiracy.

Hernandez was also charged with possession of oxycodone.

Cooking oil can easily be turned into biodiesel, and using leftover oil from deep fryers in restaurants has long been considered an environmentally alternative to traditional gasoline.

All four are currently in the Monmouth County Correctional Institute in lieu of bail.

Image via Upendra Kanda, Flickr.

By Katie Kausch (Patch Staff)