Thieves allegedly drained used cooking oil tanks behind several New York restaurants overnight, leaving owners baffled

Thieves allegedly emptied used fryer oil from storage tanks and vats at several restaurants in Naples, New York, overnight, according to Parade. Surveillance footage from Luigi’s pizza shop appears to show two people taking the oil around 4 a.m. on a Wednesday. The Ontario County Sheriff’s Office is investigating, and no arrests or suspects have been reported.

Luigi’s owner John Meyer found the storage tank about half empty after it had been almost full the night before. Middletown Tavern’s vat was emptied, and Plenty the Bakery’s vat was also emptied. Redwood Restaurant in Naples confirmed it had been targeted as well, which puts at least four businesses on the list of victims so far, all within the same small village.

No gallon totals or dollar values have been given for the Naples thefts, and the footage from Luigi’s is the only video described so far. The sheriff’s office has not said whether it believes the same two people visited every business, or whether more than one group was involved in the overnight thefts.

Meyer says the theft hurts because of the lost trust

Meyer said his family had previously dealt only with minor mischief, such as kids messing with plants or taking pumpkins at Halloween, but never a theft this large. He put the personal cost plainly, saying, “Personally, it hurts to not have that level of trust.” He added that he hopes the community will keep supporting local businesses.

Used cooking oil is a valuable commodity, as it can be processed into diesel, biodiesel, and animal feed. New York State Police had warned businesses about these thefts months before the Naples incidents. However, the Naples case is not the first of its kind, as similar cases have been reported in Rhode Island and western New York.

In Cranston, Rhode Island, about 100 gallons of cooking oil were stolen from PJ’s Pub around 2:20 a.m. on Sept. 11. License plate readers flagged an out-of-state white Ford Transit, and officers found it at the pub within 25 minutes. Two men from the Bronx were charged with larceny under $1,500 and conspiracy, and the police chief said the thefts are not new in Rhode Island.

A 2022 case in western New York involved six people accused of stealing and selling restaurant cooking oil. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York said investigators found more than 12,000 gallons worth over $73,000 in two Rochester warehouses. Prosecutors also said the group earned $60,051 by selling and shipping 95,320 gallons to a refinery in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Thieves have gone after unusual goods elsewhere too, as when thieves rammed a Tacoma card shop and loaded a truck bed with trading cards. For the Naples restaurants, the target was used fryer oil, and the thieves left owners checking tanks that had been nearly full the night before.

The North American Renderers Association estimated in 2025 that used cooking oil theft costs the U.S. industry between $300 million and $500 million a year, and possibly as much as $1 billion. However, those figures come from the industry group rather than an official tally, so the true cost may differ from the estimate.

The Ontario County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating the Naples thefts, and no arrests or suspects have been reported, while State Police have already warned businesses that thieves have been targeting used cooking oil.