A freight broker impersonation scheme led to an attempted theft of more than $273,000 worth of frozen seafood in North Arlington, New Jersey, on October 3, 2026. The shipment, weighing approximately 29,000 pounds, included shrimp, salmon, conch meat, and branzino. According to reports, the truck driver received phone calls and text messages from someone posing as the legitimate freight broker, instructing him to redirect part of the shipment to another location. Believing the instructions were authorized, the driver arrived at a location on Porete Avenue, where the cargo was to be transferred to another truck.
The attempted theft was interrupted when police responded to suspicious activity at the location. Officers found two individuals transferring pallets from the refrigerated tractor-trailer into a 26-foot box truck. Authorities arrested 18-year-old Jonathan Pollaguari of the Bronx and a juvenile in connection with the incident. Investigators determined that the delivery instructions had been issued by someone impersonating the freight broker. The entire shipment was recovered, preventing the loss of the high-value seafood cargo. The investigation also raised questions about how the individuals obtained the shipment details and coordinated the unauthorized transfer.
The case demonstrates how fraudulent communication can disrupt freight operations even when cargo remains in the possession of a legitimate driver. For carriers, freight brokers, and shippers, unexpected delivery changes create operational risks when instructions cannot be independently verified. Reliable communication, shipment visibility, and coordinated transportation workflows remain important considerations across the supply chain. Companies reviewing their freight operations can explore technologies such as FreightGraph’s freight matching solutions to better understand digital freight workflows, although the reported incident does not establish that any particular software could have prevented the attempted theft.