A lot of metal recyclers don't particularly care where the stuff they process comes from, or whether or not it was obtained legally by the people who drag the stuff in. While I was working as a Diesel mechanic in a shop in southern Illinois, an owner-operator of a raggedy old truck showed up with a major engine failure and no money to fix it. The owner of the shop offered to "dispose" of the truck and trailer and pay the guy a part of the scrap metal price he could get from a shredder in another town. No, the guy didn't own the trailer!
