Thieves Hijacked Two Truckloads Of Guy Fieri And Sammy Hagar's Santo Tequila
In a heist straight out of a movie or a rock and roll song, two truckloads of tequila from Santo Tequila were hijacked in a double heist sometime between November 9 and 13. The robbery took place in Laredo, Texas, not long after the trucks crossed the international border headed towards California and Pennsylvania.
According to Santo president Dan Butkus, the 4040 cases stolen, or 24,240 bottles, represented the final shipment of Santo Tequila for the rest of 2024, thus depriving the brand of products in the marketplace for the upcoming holiday season. The brand is working with its independent distiller to replenish stocks, but best estimates are at least a 40-day out-of-stock issue.
The theft hits the brand particularly hard. In addition to 2,000 cases each of their award-winning Blanco and Reposado Tequilas on the truck, the criminals also absconded with 40 cases of their Extra Añejo Single Barrel. This wiped out the brand's entire stock of that rare bottling. That tequila took 39 months to create, and it will take two years to replenish its stock. Santo's Tequila valued the loads at $1M in total retail value.
Losing products in the market during the holiday season will be particularly tough for Santo Tequila. Butkus says that approximately 35% of the brand's sales occur during November and December, and unfortunately, consumers should expect out-of-stocks.
"For a growing company like Santo, it's really a shame for something like this to happen in the middle of our strongest year to date and right before the holidays," says Sammy Hagar. " Anyone who knows business knows this is a gigantic setback for any independently-owned company in a hugely competitive market. But Guy and I are not the type to sit back and whine over spilled tequila. Our distillery is working day and night right now to replace as much stock as we can. Most of all, we're glad that nobody was hurt. We count our blessings and wish everyone out there a happy holiday season with family and friends."
Founded in 2017 by Hagar, Fieri joined as a partner in 2019, Santo Tequila has been steadily gaining market share in the United States. From day one, the brand has focused on creating pure agave-based tequila with no additives. Its numerous awards, along with its two high-profile owners, have helped the brand stand out in a crowded marketplace.
According to Butkus, the theft came about when their shipping broker accepted a bid to transport their tequila from a trucking company set up to steal loads. They picked up both loads and used GPS emulators to spoof tracking software that monitored the trucks as they made their way from Mexico to their destinations, the brand's East and West Coast distributors.
"Basically, they spoofed everyone after picking up our tequila loads. The drivers were sending in fake pictures saying they were having breakdown problems with the trucks, and the tracking the shipping broker was receiving matched their stories," says Butkus. "As best we can tell, they waited till they crossed the United States border and were in Laredo to begin the theft. It wasn't until the distributors called and reported that the trucks never arrived that we knew something was up. By then, it was too late; the trucks were gone, and the driver's phones were disconnected. The whole operation was sophisticated."
According to Butkus, they have managed to track one truck to a known criminal cargo area in Los Angeles, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. The truck was seen being offloaded on the street. The other semi-truck is still unaccounted for, and there is little hope of finding it.
"We are fully cooperating with the authorities on the investigation, but as of Sunday, they haven't identified any possible culprits'" says Butkus. "While we leave the investigation up to law enforcement, our primary focus right now is to work with our distillery partner in Mexico to replenish the stolen goods in time for the important holiday shopping season and with our shipping company to safeguard this from happening again in the future."
Alcohol theft has become more prevalent in the last few years. On December 21, 2023, 19,000 bottles of Hacienda Chatun Tequila were pilfered in almost the same manner as the Santo theft. In July of the same year, over $600,000 worth of wine was robbed from a liquor store in California.
Part of the reason why criminals target alcohol is that it can be an easy product to turn around for a profit. So-called "grey markets" exist in many major cities where illegal alcohol is sold for a discount to retailers, often without their knowing that the product is hot.
While Santo Tequila is holding out hope that their bottles will be recovered, ultimately, it won't help with their retail issue. Since all of the truckloads of their spirits have now fallen out of their control since they have been hijacked, even if they recover them, they won't be able to sell them. According to Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau regulations, all alcoholic products must remain under tight control from producer to consumer. The theft has broken the control chain and made selling the bottles illegal.
"The last thing we would ever want to do is put our fans at risk while drinking our tequila," says Butkus. "Once the load was hijacked, we lost control, and who knows if the product has been tampered with now? Even if we recover it, we will write it off; that's the right thing to do."
Santo Tequila is working with authorities and Cargo Net, a company that helps companies reduce the risk of cargo theft. The brand is offering a $10,000 reward to help them discover who was behind the hijackings.
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