Three men attempted to steal 1,600 pounds of meat in Holmesburg. Operation Beef Bandit foiled their plan.

A trio of would-be beef thieves were foiled in their attempt to steal 1,600 pounds of meat from a tractor-trailer in Holmesburg Tuesday after law enforcement followed them to the crime scene, authorities said.

Douglas Mathis, Jamir Scott and Tariq Duncan, both of Philadelphia, have been charged with corrupt organizations, theft and related crimes in the brazen beef that occurred in the 7300 block of Edmund Street, Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry said Wednesday.

The men, wearing masks and dark clothing, were seen breaking a lock on the tractor-trailer and hauling 25 cases of beef worth $7,000 from the rig to their getaway van, authorities said.

They were each being held on $200,000 bail, according to court documents.

The arrests were made as part of an interstate police investigation dubbed Operation Beef Bandit. The operation, involving investigators from the New Jersey State Police, Philadelphia police and the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office, targeted gangs of thieves stealing high-value goods, including food and alcohol.

Earlier this month, New Jersey State Police arrested four Philadelphia men who authorities say were part of an organized cargo theft ring targeting service areas along the New Jersey Turnpike.

Authorities said the crew committed nine burglaries at service areas along the highway, breaking into parked tractor-trailers and stealing merchandise including meat, seafood and alcohol. They were linked to a string of robberies in the tri-state area involving millions of dollars worth of stolen property, state police said.

After an investigation, New Jersey State Police focused on the men suspected of the robberies in the Molly Pitcher service area in Cranbury, New Jersey, on September 13.

Officers spotted two vehicles entering the service area shortly before 1:30 a.m. that day and saw four men attempting to steal boxes of meat from a parked and occupied tractor-trailer, authorities said. When officers moved in to apprehend them, the would-be thieves scattered, authorities said.

Hanif Tucker, 31, was taken into custody, while Shaun Coleman, 23, attempted to flee on foot but was arrested shortly after. The remaining two suspects, Salahudin Reddy, 37, and Rashan Clark-Reddy, 26, attempted to flee in a stolen vehicle, crashing into an unmarked police car as they attempted to escape, authorities said.

After a brief chase in which the two men damaged two marked police cars, they were also taken into custody.

The four men were charged with conspiracy to commit theft of goods and related crimes, authorities said.

The beef theft is the latest in a series of cargo thefts in the Philadelphia area.

It appears that thieves are taking a “surf and turf” approach to their schemes, with recent thefts including expensive seafood.

Earlier this month, a team of six thieves stole three large pallets of crab meat worth $42,000 from a tractor-trailer in South Philadelphia.

Officers responded to a call about a theft from the back of a tractor-trailer on the 600 block of Packer Avenue around 3:30 a.m. Sept. 4, police said. The truck driver said he was sleeping inside the truck when he felt movement in the back of the vehicle and saw six men stealing boxes of crab meat from the truck. After loading the stolen seafood into three different cars, the crew split up and fled the scene, police said.

Philadelphia police said such cargo thefts are a problem in the city, in part because the perpetrators can be difficult to identify. Police officials said they have worked with several jurisdictions in recent months to target such crimes. Department officials declined to comment on the most recent arrests and referred questions to the state attorney general’s office.

Anyone with information about cargo thefts is encouraged to submit a tip to phillypolice.com or through the department’s hotline at 215-868-8477.