A detective with the Braselton Police Department is featured in an online Wall Street Journal story about cooking oil thefts. 

Detective Sergeant J.D. Gille talks about a break in a case involving grease theft that he had been working on for weeks. 

A white van with a flat tire had caught Gille's eye, and when he approached the vehicle, he smelled a distinct odor. 

"The French-fry smell gave him away," Gill is quoted as saying.

The odor was from used oil allegedly stolen from behind a local restaurant.

Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said a lot of local restaurants have put their excess oil behind their businesses under lock and key. 

To deter cooking oil thefts? 

"I would advise the restaurants to report any suspicious activity late at night or any suspicious vehicles or people not doing business with them," Smith said. 

Subscribe to the Barrow Patch newsletter and get daily and weekly newsletters, breaking news alerts and Patch deals all delivered to your e-mail inbox. You can also follow Barrow Patch on Twitter and “like” us on Facebook.