Texas MRE Bandit Convicted For $1.1 Million Theft of MREs
EL PASO, TEXAS — A federal jury in El Paso has convicted Joseph Lavar Davis, 47, a former U.S. Army civilian contractor, for orchestrating the theft of more than 200 pallets of Meals Ready to Eat (MREs) valued at roughly $1,120,000.
The verdict was announced by U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas, who said the prosecution was carried out in support of the Trump Administration’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.
Evidence presented at trial showed Davis was indicted on Feb. 12, 2025, alongside three co‑defendants, on charges of conspiracy to commit theft of government property and theft of government property. The crimes occurred between Feb. 24 and Aug. 12, 2020.
Investigators found that Davis used his insider knowledge of Army food‑service supply operations, gained during his military service and later as a civilian contractor, to create false paperwork, rent trucks, and coordinate pickups of MRE pallets from Ft. Bliss. He then arranged for the stolen rations to be sold to a civilian buyer.
On Aug. 12, 2020, FBI agents and Army Criminal Investigation Division personnel executed a search warrant at a civilian warehouse in El Paso, discovering about 100 pallets of stolen MREs. The warehouse operator had been purchasing the rations from individuals tied to Davis’s scheme.
Court documents outlined a coordinated operation involving:
- False procurement requests
- Truck rentals used to transport stolen pallets
- A soldier who helped pick up and move the MREs
- An intermediary who connected the thieves to the buyer
- A civilian seller who posted the MREs online
Davis negotiated prices, arranged deliveries, and personally received payment for the stolen goods.
U.S. Attorney Simmons said Davis “betrayed the very country he once swore to protect,” adding that the conviction represents “a win for the Western District of Texas, a win for Justice, and a win for the American people.”
Jarod Brown, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s El Paso Field Office, said the verdict “should send a clear message” that theft of government property will be aggressively pursued. He emphasized the strength of the partnership between the FBI and Army Criminal Investigation Division CID.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lori Hughes and Mallory Rasmussen prosecuted the case.
