BOSTON, MA – A New York man has been arrested in connection with a multi-state cargo theft conspiracy that prosecutors say netted hundreds of thousands of dollars in stolen seafood, fruit, and luxury goods through an elaborate email hacking scheme targeting shipping companies.
Federal authorities say 31-year-old Romoy Forbes, a Jamaican national living in Deer Park, New York, conspired with others to infiltrate the email systems of legitimate trucking companies and use the hacked accounts to fraudulently book loads of cargo for pickup and resale. He is charged with interstate transportation of stolen goods and conspiracy to commit that offense.
According to charging documents, on July 15, 2025, Forbes allegedly stole 33,750 pounds of frozen snow crabs valued at $325,000 from a warehouse in Worcester, Massachusetts. Prosecutors say a co-conspirator hacked into the email account of a trucking company identified as “Carrier 1” and used it to pose as a legitimate contractor for a shipper. Believing the request was authentic, the shipper authorized the pickup, allowing Forbes to collect the seafood and drive off with it.
Investigators allege the theft was part of a larger scheme that also involved pallets of blueberries and more than $400,000 worth of designer cologne transported and sold for illicit profit. Forbes was arrested Thursday on Long Island and made his initial court appearance in the Eastern District of New York. He is expected to appear in federal court in Boston at a later date.
Key details:
- Romoy Forbes, 31, charged in multi-state cargo theft conspiracy
- Allegedly stole 33,750 pounds of snow crabs worth $325,000
- Scheme involved hacked trucking emails and stolen luxury goods
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts, with support from federal law enforcement agencies investigating organized cargo theft across multiple states.
