2 Sentenced In Theft Of $1M In Nickel Briquettes
BALTIMORE (AP) -- Two men have been sentenced in the theft of $1 million in nickel briquettes which were imported through the Port of Baltimore.
Fifty-three-year-old Gregg Lee Purbaugh of Baltimore was sentenced to 18 months in prison and 46-year-old Kenneth Trainum, also of Baltimore, was sentenced to one year.
Both were also ordered to pay $1 million in restitution at sentencing Wednesday in federal court in Baltimore.
According to their plea agreements, Purbaugh and Trainum opened Bear Creek Warehouse Co. in 2006. Their main customer was an international mining firm that shipped nickel to the port for storage at the warehouse.
Prosecutors say Purbaugh contacted the owner of a Pittsburgh scrap metal company, who agreed to buy 80,000 pounds of nickel.
Authorities say Trainum helped load the nickel into trucks.
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