Seized catalytic converters are shown in a 2022 photo provided by the Department of Homeland Security.
Courtesy: Department of Homeland Security
A New Jersey man pleaded guilty in Oklahoma federal court to leading a massive theft ring that stole catalytic converters from vehicles and sold them for more than $600 million in total to a refinery that extracted precious metals contained in the devices.
The defendant, Navin Khanna, is the latest person to plead guilty in connection with the ring, which was exposed after police in Tulsa, Oklahoma, discovered nearly 130 catalytic converters in the bed of a truck they stopped in May 2021, after an off-duty officer reported suspicions about the vehicle.
That stop came during a nationwide surge of thefts in catalytic converters, which are part of the exhaust systems of automobiles, and which contain precious metals including platinum, palladium and rhodium.
The Justice Department said that Khanna, 41, on Monday admitted to being the owner and operator of D.G. Auto Parts in New Jersey, and from May 2020 through October 2022, “he conspired with others to purchase and transport large quantities of stolen catalytic converters from Oklahoma, Texas, and other states to New Jersey.”
In a plea agreement filed in U.S. District Court in Tulsa, Khanna said, “After purchasing these catalytic converters, I resold most of them to Dowa Metals & Mining, a metal refinery, which would then extract the powdered precious metals.”
CNBC has requested comment from Dowa Metals, whose website says that its Burlington, New Jersey, facility “has played a key role in converter recycling in America since 2016.”
Dowa Metals is a subsidiary of Japan-based Dowa Holdings Co., which is a component of the Nikkei 225 stock market index. The company has not been charged in connection with Khanna’s case.
Khanna pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to receive, possess, and dispose of stolen goods in interstate commerce and five counts of money laundering stemming from his participation in the stolen goods scheme.
The Holmdel, New Jersey, resident faces a maximum possible sentence of between 14 years and 17½ years in prison.
An attorney for Khanna did not immediately reply to a request for comment from CNBC.
Luis Benitez installs one of four new catalytic converters onto a Chevrolet Silverado at Johnny Franklin’s Muffler on July 11, 2022 in San Rafael, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
As part of his plea agreement, Khanna agreed to surrender almost $4 million in cash and 11 luxury vehicles, among them “Lamborghini, two Mercedes AMGs, two Ferraris, a McLaren, a Porsche, a Ford F650 Truck, and a BMW M3,” the Justice Department said in a press release.
Authorities also seized “real estate properties, high-end jewelry, gold bars, and over 200 pallets of catalytic converters … during the execution of search warrants at Khanna’s properties,” said the DOJ.
“Khanna’s theft ring took advantage of hard-working citizens in the Northern District of Oklahoma by stealing catalytic converters, rendering the vehicle unusable,” Clint Johnson, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma, said in a statement.
“I would like to thank the Tulsa Police Department and our law enforcement partners for their tireless efforts in bringing this senseless crime to justice,” said Johnson.
Thirteen other people have pleaded guilty to roles in the converter theft scheme and are awaiting sentencing, the Justice Department said.
