Ledyard — In what has become an increasingly common occurrence, Ledyard police on Wednesday charged two Bronx, N.Y. men in the theft of cooking oil from a Route 12 restaurant.

Police responded to Village Pizza at 1602 Route 12 at about 2 a.m. on Wednesday for a possible burglary and found two men had stolen the oil from a locked storage tank at the rear of the restaurant. The two men, driving a white box truck, were found by state police in the area of Cardinal Lane.

Samy Figueroa, 23, and Marichal Reyes, 26, were charged with fourth-degree larceny, third-degree criminal mischief and third-degree criminal trespass.

Police have said the thefts have become more common of late because of the high price of cooking oil and demand on the black market. The used oil can be converted into biodiesel and used for transportation or heating fuel.

The two men were each held in lieu of a $25,000 bond and scheduled to appear Aug. 3 in New London Superior Court.