PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Arizona is launching a statewide task force aimed at cracking down on cargo theft.

CargoNet estimates $725 million was lost in cargo thefts nationwide in 2025. Arizona is among the states where cargo theft happens most often.

Cargo thefts rise in Arizona

State Sen. Kevin Payne was the sponsor of Senate Bill 1452, which created the Cargo Theft Task Force and was signed into law by Gov. Katie Hobbs on Monday.

“There’s a lot of cargo theft going on,” Payne said.

The bill creates a statewide cargo theft task force made up of six investigators, legal staff, and any law enforcement designated by the Attorney General’s office. The task force will investigate cargo theft and track new criminal trends.

“I don’t think that people thought it was as serious as it actually is,” Payne said.

Scott Cornell, chief risk officer for SPG Cargo and Logistics and chair of the Transported Asset Protection Association, said he has investigated cargo theft for three decades and that cases have become harder to solve lately

“These large, sophisticated international crime rings have taken over cargo theft in the United States, and they pull the strings from a dozen or two dozen different countries,” Cornell said.

Cornell said addressing cargo theft directly through a specialized task force at the state level could have more impact.

“I think when you address it directly, like Arizona is with a cargo theft task force, you’re bound to have much more impact than a state that doesn’t have that specialization,” he said.

In Arizona, expensive shoes, watches and electronics are among the items stolen from semitrucks and trains in the last couple of years.

“We pay for it,” Cornell said. “The cost is absolutely going to be passed on to the consumer. There’s no question about it.”

Payne said the goal of the task force is to reduce cargo theft in Arizona.

“I sure would like to eliminate a lot of it,” Payne said. “You know, cut it down a lot. Make it to where it’s not profitable for them to do this so they’ll stop.”

The Arizona Attorney General’s Office is in charge of establishing the task force. In a statement, the AG’s office says Attorney General Kris Mayes looks forward to continuing the ongoing work to combat retail theft and cargo theft through this task force, and it will coordinate efforts with law enforcement statewide.

The task force’s first report is due to the governor, Senate president and House speaker by July 1, 2027.

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CINCINNATI — An Arizona man has been found guilty of supplying dozens of kilograms of cocaine to multiple U.S. locations, including Cincinnati, bi-weekly for more than five years.

Tucson resident Cesar Cervantes, 52, was convicted of participating in drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracies in a jury trial after the government seized more than 160 kilograms of cocaine, three kilograms of fentanyl and $1.4 million in cash from him.

According to court documents, Cervantes would use a network to deliver drugs that originated in Mexico to multiple locations across the country, including designated couriers in Cincinnati, between at least July 2018 and August 2023. Officials said he would supply between 25 and 50 kilograms biweekly to his coconspirators.

Cervantes would then use money launderers to funnel money back to Mexico. In one instance, court documents said he had coconspirators deliver around $300,000 to two separate money launderers — one based in China and another in Colombia.

The jury found Cervantes guilty on all counts for his role in the conspiracies following a trial before U.S. District Judge Matthew W. McFarland in the Southern District of Ohio. He faces at least 10 years and up to life in prison.

Investigators are analyzing two ransom notes sent after Nancy Guthrie vanished, as a retired FBI agent questions whether the latest message is real. A new development in Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance centers on two ransom notes sent to her family after she vanished. Investigators believe the messages may have come from the same person or group, possibly from the same computer IP address. The first note demanded billions in bitcoin, while the second claimed Guthrie had died and offered an apology. Retired FBI agent John Iannarelli says he is skeptical of the second note and questions why the sender has not provided credible information about her location. The case remains active as detectives continue following any reliable leads.