A pair of rare athletic shoes listed for sale online has unraveled a massive cargo-theft operation, leading law enforcement officers to a warehouse stacked with $1 million worth of stolen running gear in the Los Angeles region, authorities said.
Investigators first traced the operation when exclusive Brooks-Disney running shoes, normally sold only at Disney-run events, surfaced on the internet. Detectives executed a controlled purchase of the collaborative footwear via eBay, which pointed them directly to a commercial warehouse operating under the name DesignerDeals4Less in the 21000 block of Nordhoff Street in Chatsworth.
When Los Angeles Police Department cargo-theft detectives raided the facility last week, they discovered 35 pallets of brand-name running shoes stacked to the ceiling. The cache included massive quantities of Brooks, Hokas, New Balance, Adidas, and On footwear. According to Los Angeles Police Capt. Mike Bland, the entire inventory was plundered from freight trains traversing tracks throughout California.
Confronted with the evidence at the scene, the business owner admitted to purchasing the stolen railway property from illegitimate brand distributors. Heros Tasci, 51, of Simi Valley, was arrested on suspicion of receiving stolen property and subsequently posted bail. Investigators are actively collaborating with the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office on the ongoing prosecution.
The operation that uncovered the Chatsworth warehouse involved a multi-agency task force comprising the LAPD, Burlington Northern & Santa Fe Police, Union Pacific Railroad Police, Alameda Belt Line Police, Los Angeles Port Police, Los Angeles World Airport Police, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office Bureau of Investigation, and Homeland Security Investigations.
Southern California serves as a primary global hub for commercial freight, moving massive volumes of goods to and from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Supply-chain congestion frequently forces freight trains to sit idle on hundreds of miles of tracks, leaving railcars vulnerable to criminals operating in urban railyards. High-profile incidents, such as the 2022 plundering of freight cars in Lincoln Heights that left debris scattered across the rails, have previously drawn intense public scrutiny and criticism from state officials regarding security.
Cargo thefts remain a pervasive and growing challenge across the region, with incidents surging since the COVID-19 pandemic. Industry estimates compiled by the Association of American Railroads indicate that more than 75,000 cargo theft incidents occurred in 2025, a rise attributed largely to organized criminal networks. Perpetrators frequently target slow-moving freight trains in remote areas like the Mojave Desert, sometimes slashing air brake hoses to trigger emergency stops before loading stolen merchandise into box trucks or hiding it in nearby brush.
Federal court affidavits filed by Homeland Security Investigations special agents indicate that transnational criminal groups, primarily consisting of individuals from Mexico’s Sinaloa state, frequently orchestrate these operations. Similar heists targeting footwear in recent years have included the theft of nearly $2 million worth of Nike sneakers across 2024 and 2025.
Law enforcement agencies continue to target the infrastructure fencing stolen goods across Southern California. Last year, the LAPD uncovered two storefronts in Los Angeles County housing approximately $4.5 million in merchandise stolen from cargo ships, trucks, and trains. In that case, police charged that a sophisticated ring operated out of DJ General Tool & Wire locations in Montebello and Huntington Park, fencing power tools, e-bikes, and appliances from major manufacturers including Dyson, Milwaukee, DeWalt, and Makita.
Smaller-scale freight heists also occur with regularity across the transportation network. Colton police recently arrested a man suspected of stealing $54,000 worth of Hot Wheels toys, spanning roughly 350 boxes, from a freight train. Separately, BNSF Police and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department recovered 123 boxes of McLaren F1 Lego sets valued at about $230 each following a boxcar burglary.
