Thieves Arrested In Massive Maple Syrup Heist

Four thieves have been arrested in connection with a massive maple syrup heist. The heist took place at a Canadian warehouse and reportedly spanned almost a year.

The thieves were able to make off with about six billion pounds of syrup, which amounts to about $18 million in total market value, reports ABC News.

Sergeant Gregory Gomez Del Prado of Quebec Police stated:

“It’s one of the most important robberies in Quebec because of the quantity stolen and the value of the syrup.”

Quebec police initially arrested three men on Tuesday in connection with the massive maple syrup heist but announced that they arrested a fourth man, Stephan Darveau, on Wednesday. The four men met in court on Wednesday under charges of conspiracy to commit theft, possession of property obtained by crime, and fraud.

Yahoo! News notes that Simon Trepanier, director of the Federation of Quebec Maple Syrup Producers, stated:

“We know that there are probably more people involved. It’s a complex case. At the beginning we knew it had been done by a very organized group because it’s impossible to steal that amount of maple syrup without being organized.”

Trepanier added that his organization stored their overproduction supply at the warehouse the thieves targeted. Included in the overstock was about 10 million barrels, which were housed in a rented facility. They did not know of the heist until workers at the warehouse called them to report empty syrup barrels. Trepanier explained:

“At first people were laughing saying, ‘Oh, this is just food; it’s not like stealing cars or jewelry.’ You realize now, one barrel holds 45 gallons of maple syrup with a worth of $1,800. It’s more difficult to put in your bag than jewelry. It’s still a high value item.”

Almost two thirds of the stolen maple syrup has been recovered along with equipment that was used to move the syrup. Sergeant Gomez believes that there will be more arrests made in the massive maple syrup heist case, though he would not comment on how many individuals were involved in the elaborate heist.