They stole 45 bottles from the restaurant’s cellar, valued at 1,648,500 euros
The National Police has arrested on Tuesday the two alleged perpetrators, a man and a woman, of the theft of the 45 bottles of wine from the Atrio restaurant. This is one of the most media robberies in recent years. As pointed out by the National Police, after a “millimeter planning of the robbery”, the thieves stole 45 bottles of wine valued at 1,648,500 euros from this famous restaurant in Cáceres.
Those arrested were located in Croatia in an international operation with the participation of agents of the National Police together with the Sirene Office, Europol, Interpol, the General Directorate of Criminal Police and the Gruda Border Police Station (Croatia). The two detainees visited the restaurant three times before the robbery to do a preliminary study of the place and the Police verified the “great professionalism, specialization and perfect planning of the robbery.”
A few days after the robbery they left Spain and their continuous changes of location made it impossible to know their exact whereabouts. Finally, they were located entering Croatia from Montenegro through the Karasovi Sutorina border post.
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The 2 alleged perpetrators of one of the most mediatic robberies of recent years have been arrested
After careful planning of the robbery, they stole 45 bottles of wine, valued at €1,648,500, at the Atrio restaurant in #Cacerespic.twitter.com/19JD1gRhem
National Police (@police) July 19, 2022
Surprise of the restaurant owners
José Polo, owner of Atrio together with Toño Pérez, has shown his surprise after learning from the newspaper HOY that the two alleged perpetrators of the robbery committed in his establishment have been arrested by the National Police.
“I never thought they would get caught. It was really very difficult », he said from Burgos, where he is currently traveling. After the initial surprise, Polo took advantage of the occasion to congratulate the security forces for the work carried out. They remain expectant for the explanations that the National Police will offer this Wednesday at the press conference called to find out, among other things, what has happened to the bottles that disappeared from the cellar.
How the robbery happened
The robbery occurred on the night of October 26 to 27 last year, when a couple, perpetrators of the event, dined at this two-Michelin-star restaurant in Cáceres, staying in one of the rooms of its luxurious hotel of the Relais chain & Châteaux and took away without arousing suspicion the 45 most valuable bottles of wine from his cellar. They were a man and a woman who spoke in English. Seven bottles from the Château d’Yquem winery, which belongs to the Louis Vuitton group, and 38 from the Romanée Conti winery, both French, were stolen from the establishment. Among the missing bottles was a unique piece: the Château d’Yquem from 1806, a wine with a 215-year history and a curious story behind it. “It is the loss that hurts me the most,” said José Polo, co-owner of Atrio along with Michelin-starred chef Toño Pérez, days after the robbery.
This precious bottle, which he acquired in the year 2000, was broken at the neck area when it was going to be deposited in a wooden box. They traveled with her to Bordeaux, where the winery is located, so that the broth was transferred to a new bottle without losing its properties. It was the most expensive wine on the Atrio menu, where it was offered to the public for a value of 350,000 euros.
The Atrio winery is one of the most recognized wineries in the world, with a 300-page menu that contains some of the most prized wines and includes more than 4,100 references. In total, there are 37,000 bottles from 21 different countries. The jewel of the collection is the famous Chateau d’Yquem bottle from 1806, which they acquired at an auction in London for 12,000 euros.
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