Italy's biggest-ever wine heist
A multi million euro wine heist in Italy. As thieves in Tuscany steal 30 thousand bottles of the one of the most iconic labels in the country from a warehouse of the the prized Marchesi Antinori winery as it prepared for a major export. The company said in the past few hours, they believe two vans and up to six thieves were involved. Gavin Lee speaks to France 24's correspondent in Rome, Seema…
Thieves stole 30,000 bottles of wine from the Marchesi Antinori winery in Tuscany, Italy. The stolen wines, valued at approximately $5.8 million, included bottles of Solaia, Tignanello, and Guado al Tasso. According to CBS News, the thieves, who were at least six in number, used two large trucks and disabled the winery's alarm system and surveillance cameras before making off with the wine.
The theft occurred at a warehouse where the wines were being prepared for export. The company representative told Gulf News that the stolen wines were among their most iconic labels and prized by collectors, selling for 120 to 300 euros or more depending on the vintages. The theft was discovered on Monday, but the company made it public on Friday to avoid interfering with the investigation.
The chief executive of Marchesi Antinori, Renzo Cotarella, described the theft as the largest of its kind in Italy, saying "A theft of this scale and value has certainly never occurred in Italy." KahawaTungu reported that the thieves were believed to have used company forklifts to load the trucks and that the selection of bottles suggested they were wine connoisseurs with inside knowledge.
Brief written by urgent.news from France 24, CBS News, Gulf News, KahawaTungu — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
