Six Guilty in Massive Crude Oil Theft Scheme

Six individuals have pleaded guilty to their roles in a conspiracy to steal crude oil from Permian Basin producers and resell it for profit. The scheme, which involved 14 defendants, was uncovered by federal prosecutors who announced that those who pleaded guilty on July 15 include Gyardo Gonzalez, Mario Mendoza, Miguel A. Soto, Luis Rojo, Diana Marquez Rojo, and Jesus Martin Hernandez-Borja.

The defendants admitted to stealing tens of thousands of barrels of crude oil from producers in eastern New Mexico and selling it to Louis George Edgett and Brenden Floyd Strickland for well below West Texas Intermediate market prices. Typically, they paid between $10 and $15 per barrel. Court documents revealed that one conspirator sold 10,975 barrels of stolen crude oil between June 2022 and July 2024, with an estimated market value of $888,975, but Edgett and Strickland paid only $164,625.

Another conspirator sold 9,090 barrels during the first half of 2024. Prosecutors said the oil had a value of over $724,000, while they paid about $136,350. A third conspirator admitted stealing crude oil valued at up to $1.5 million. The defendants also admitted that James Darrell Reid and Randell Reid purchased the stolen crude oil from Edgett and Strickland at below-market prices.