MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa --
Police said thieves stole more than 42,000 pounds of meat when they took off with a loaded semi tractor-trailer last weekend.
Marshalltown police said the driver of a semi parked the trailer in a lot on Saturday near the intersection of Highways 30 and 14. When he came back to pick up the trailer on Monday, it was gone.
The trailer belongs to Mid-Continent Trucking of Denison.
Marshalltown Police Chief Jack McAllister said it's common for truckers to park their trailers in the lot overnight or for the weekend.
McAllister said the trailer was locked and the cooler left running. He said it took someone with a semi and knowledge of the locking system to take off with the trailer.
The trailer was loaded with 42,000 pounds or 21 tons of meat scraps used to make processed meat products. The driver was taking the shipment to a plant in Indianapolis.
Mid-Continent Safety Manager Paul Cromwell said the trailer is worth close to $45,000 and the product inside another $100,000.
The trailer has an Iowa license plate number TG7 722.
Cromwell said the stolen trailer was not equipped with GPS, so the company has no way to track the trailer.
Anyone with information about the case should call the Marshalltown Police Department at 641-754-5729.
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