$648K worth of wine stolen in two-day warehouse heist in Seattle

Dec. 6 (UPI) -- One suspect is in custody after police say a pair of men was able to pull off a two-day warehouse heist over the weekend where they made off with more than $600,000 worth of wine.

During the theft, more than 200 cases of wine valued at $648K were stolen from the temperature-controlled storage lockers at Esquin Wine & Spirits in Sodo.

The men tried to cover their tracks by disabling motion sensors, spray-painting the lenses of security cameras and tampering with the gas lines of the warehouse in an attempt to cause an explosion.

Luckily for police, the men missed one camera, leading to the arrest of the first suspect at his home on Monday. The 34-year-old Seattle man is being held in King County Jail on investigation of burglary and arson.

His accomplice and the wine are still unaccounted for. That might not be the case for too much longer as Esquin Wine & Spirits is offering a $20,000 reward for information that leads to the “safe recovery of the wine.”

At the home of the suspect in custody, police discovered a descriptive wine list and correspondence with a San Francisco wine consultant.

[The Seattle Times]