One subset of Hollywood these days is the celebrity spirits release. These have been proliferating for some time already, and one of the new entrants has been a star power pairing. Rock star Sammy Hagar has long held his own line of tequilas, with his famous Cabo Wabo brand that originated at his Mexican resort in Cabo San Lucas. But recently, he launched a new brand with food celebrity Guy Fieri.
Their Santo brand with three varieties - Blanco, Repesado, and 39-month Extra Anejo - has become popular, and the company has been gearing up for the holiday gift-giving season, but then a few weeks ago, news broke of a dastardly development with the shipping of the spirit. The word was that shipments of the tequila had disappeared, with the price tag of $1 million attached to the missing cargo.
The deliveries were originating from Laredo, Texas. On November 10, it was reported that the Pennsylvania destination never saw the tequila arrive, and then four days later, it was realized that a second, set to be seen in California, also never became the destination. In total, 440 cases are reported missing, totaling 24,240 bottles. There are mysteries surrounding just what took place, as well as the conflicting reports on what transpired and how.
Initial details say that the partnering shipping company received “red flags,” claiming the shipments had been illegally “double brokered” and that hijackers had used a GPS emulator to show the trucks on the proper routes when they were actually taken elsewhere. "I mean, one is one. But now you've got to have double the amount of people to pull off the double heist," said Fieri. "It just seems so much riskier to take two trucks."
But now the mystery deepens. Days later, Laredo police have come out with a new explanation of things, sort of. To start, the authorities have decreased the freight value of the bottles, down to $385,598. But secondly, they say that the tequila has not actually been hijacked, but rerouted. Apparently, an issue at the Pennsylvania warehouse destination prevented delivery, and the shipment was then sent out to southern California. Los Angeles Police are now investigating, and that department details that “no force was ever used to acquire the trucks and the freight was transferred from the warehouse to the legitimate motor carrier hired by the shipper to transport it.”
The drivers have been accounted for and were not harmed, but as the authorities are certain there was no heist there is still a mystery about where the tequila is located. There are also questions regarding the shipping company declaring a heist taking place but appearing ignorant about the simpler explanation that deliveries had been rerouted, as well as nearly three times the over-estimated cost of the shipments. Laredo police now tell the Laredo Morning Times that no force was used and that the trucks went elsewhere and delivered the load; however, what happened to the 4,000 cases of agave spirits is still unknown.
"It's like a movie, but it's real," Guy Fieri told People Magazine. By the sounds of things, this is a movie desperately in need of a sequel.
