FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. — A routine business check in Flagler County led to the arrest of two men for attempting to steal nearly $5,000 of used cooking oil.
According to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, 48-year-old Rui Gen Lin and 41-year-old Rong Chen of Gainesville were caught stealing 7,000 pounds of used cooking oil from Woody’s Bar-B-Que in Palm Coast Thursday morning.
Investigators said Lin and Chen were spotted inside a fenced-in area behind the restaurant just after 3 a.m.
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Deputies said they caught the two men pumping used cooking oil from a vat into two large tanks in the back of an unmarked white box truck.
According to the business owner, neither man had permission to take the oil.
Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said with the price of oil rising, the theft of used cooking oil is increasing across the country.
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“They own a company that buys and recycles old cooking oil but, in this case, they tried to increase their profits by stealing the oil,” Staly said.
Recycled cooking oil is used to make “bio-diesel fuel” and can also be used in soaps, shampoos, and cosmetics.
Both Lin and Chen were charged with two felony counts of burglary of an unoccupied structure, possession of burglary tools with intent and petit theft.
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