Parked Trucks Hit in 42.2% of Mexico Cargo Thefts in Q3

Cargo thieves in Mexico are hitting more trucks while they sit parked. Supply chain risk firm Overhaul said in its third-quarter 2026 cargo theft analysis that parked commercial vehicles accounted for 42.2% of reported incidents, up 9 percentage points from a year earlier.

Thefts from trucks stopped on the road while moving still make up the larger share, at 55.4%, but that share fell 8.6 percentage points. The gap between the two now stands at about 13 percentage points, according to the report, as reported by FreightWaves. For carriers running freight from central Mexico to the U.S. border, where and when a truck stops is now a bigger part of the risk.

Informal truck stops and fuel-theft zones draw thieves

Overhaul found that many parked-truck thefts happen at high-risk roadside spots, including informal truck stops and areas known for illegal fuel sales. Ricardo Malacara, Overhaul’s sales director, based in Guadalajara, said some lots are less secure than others and that “the status of safe havens is changing.”

Luis Enrique Villatoro, president of Mexico’s National Association of Vehicle Tracking and Protection Companies (ANERPV), went over the findings during an Overhaul webinar. He said carriers need to pay closer attention to secure parking, route monitoring and schedule changes that keep trucks away from areas where organized crime groups operate.

Central Mexico and the Bajío account for most incidents

Central Mexico had 48% of incidents in the quarter and the Bajío manufacturing region had 28%, for a combined 76%. The northeastern region’s share rose from 6% to 12% compared with the third quarter of 2025. The southeast rose from 6% to approximately 11.5%.

By state, the State of Mexico led with 22.5% of incidents. Puebla followed with 15% and Guanajuato with 9.6%; together those three states accounted for 47%. Veracruz, San Luis Potosí, Jalisco, Michoacán, Hidalgo, Querétaro and Tlaxcala were also listed as major hotspots.

Villatoro singled out San Luis Potosí, which sits on corridors linking Bajío factories to the northeast. He described gangs on highways between Lagos de Moreno, Jalisco, and San Luis Potosí that use several vehicles, tractor-trailers among them, to block roads and stop trucks. When police step up patrols on one highway, he said, the groups move. He gave the example of activity shifting from the Querétaro-Celaya corridor toward San Luis de la Paz, Guanajuato, near the San Luis Potosí state line.

Overnight hours and Saturdays see more thefts

Overhaul reported that 61% of cargo thefts took place between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. The midnight to 6 a.m. window alone had 31% of incidents, up from 22% in the third quarter of 2025, and 30% happened between 6 p.m. and midnight.

Weekdays still had 82% of incidents. Saturday’s share rose from 7% to 11%, so thefts are spreading more across the week.

Food, beverages and electronics among top targets

Food and beverage loads made up 32.6% of thefts, up 7.3 percentage points from the same quarter in 2025. Miscellaneous merchandise was 8.7% and construction and industrial goods 6.4%. Electronics, alcohol and home and garden products came in at 6.1% each.

Electronics theft rose 1.4 percentage points year over year, with televisions, computers, audio and video gear and electronic components among the most targeted items. These loads follow a different pattern from overall theft:

• 94% of electronics thefts happened in central Mexico, the Bajío and the northeast.
• Five highways had 73% of electronics thefts, led by the Mexico City-Saltillo corridor on Federal Highway 57D at 23%.
• The Querétaro-Zacatecas corridor on Highway 45D had 18% and the Chamapa-Guadalajara corridor 16%.
• Most hits came in daylight: 42% between noon and 6 p.m. and 31% between 6 a.m. and noon.
• 85% involved moving trucks and 15% parked ones.

What it means for cross-border carriers

Much of the targeted freight moves on corridors that connect Mexican factories and distribution centers to U.S. markets, so the shift affects U.S. shippers, brokers and carriers with loads crossing the border. Thieves now go after parked trucks at night as well as rigs on the highway, which puts parking choices and overnight schedules in the same risk picture as route planning.

Malacara said plans have to be revised constantly and “can’t be a static plan.” Overhaul also pointed to real-time monitoring for temperature-sensitive loads such as food and pharmaceuticals, since traditional recorders may only show a problem after delivery.

Holiday freight season ahead

Villatoro said heavier freight around Mexico’s Buen Fin sales event, Black Friday and Cyber Monday could give organized groups more targets, with more electronics, clothing, footwear, household goods and personal care products on the road. He projected during the webinar that cargo theft could rise between 9% and 11% in November, and that theft of delivery vehicles may increase as holiday shipments pick up. Those figures are projections, not confirmed fourth-quarter results.

Sources: FreightWaves, Yahoo Finance