Police arrest man for siphoning 300 gallons of grease from Burger King

An Illinois man was arrested for allegedly stealing from a Morgan Hill fast food restaurant. But it wasn't money or even burgers. Police say he stole used cooking oil.

David Richardson, 49, allegedly siphoned 300 gallons of the inedible grease Tuesday from an on-site storage tank at Burger King on Monterey Road and into his tanker that is used specifically to transport used cooking oil.

Police believe Richardson intended to recycle the cooking oil at a refinery in Atascadero, where he would get $1.35 per gallon. Police said Richardson's 5,000-gallon tank was approximately half full at the time of his arrest. A full tank would have netted Richardson $6,750.

"He certainly had been to other places in the area," said Morgan Hill police Cmdr. David Swing. "Our guess is its a bio-diesel fuel thing. It's like someone stealing copper wire. This might turn into something that starts to occur more frequently."