Six People Charged In Scrap Metal Scheme

The Tennessee Highway Patrol Criminal Investigations Division along with the Marion County Sheriff’s Department, charged 6 individuals on Monday for an elaborate scheme of allegedly stealing tractor-trailer loads of cargo worth $1.8 million over the last 2 years. Investigators say that Jay Sanders, Monteagle, Tenn., and Gary Alto, Whitwell were employed by SCS Trucking in Whitwell. They were responsible for hauling loads of scrap metal from a company in Ashland City to South Pittsburg. The two drivers allegedly devised a scheme in which they would pay off security guards at one plant and workers at another, and then divert the loads to Dodson Scrap Metal Yard in Whitwell. The owners of Dodson Scrap Metal Yard, Randall and Melissa Brown, allegedly would not document receiving the metal and would haul it on their own tractor-trailer to a scrap metal dealer in Alabama for cash. The scheme has allegedly been ongoing since at least 2010. Investigators charged Jay Sanders, Gary Alto, Randall Brown, Melissa Brown, James King, and Craig Meeks each with theft of property over $250,000.