Detective Sniffs Out $200,000 Cheese Heist

Saddle Brook police Tuesday sniffed out an Illinois man’s alleged plot to sell 21 tons of stolen Muenster cheese on the black market, Police Chief Robert Kugler said. Cops caught up with alleged cheese bandit Veniamin K. Balika, who was traveling cross country with the stinky haul, at a New Jersey Turnpike rest area in Ridgefield, where he was found inside a parked tractor-trailer with the 42,000 pounds of hot cheese, Kugler said. Kugler said Balika, a 34-year-old Ukrainian citizen, allegedly obtained the Wisconsin Muenster from K&K Cheese Company in Cashton, Wisc. by passing fraudulent paperwork.