2023-11-13 16:55:00
Two men who stole some 420 barrels of beer from the brewer AB Inbev in 2018 were sentenced on Monday to one year and 14 months in prison by the Louvain criminal court.
The two exchanged beer with water, then returned the kegs to the brewer who sold them in Dutch cafes as well as at a New Year’s party in Antwerp. AB Inbev filed a complaint and the court awarded it 367,000 euros in damages.
The perpetrators were a transport subcontractor for AB Inbev and an alcohol trader. The first collected the barrels several times in 2018 at the Jupille brewery, to bring them to a warehouse, first in Zaventem, then in Grimbergen, where the barrels were exchanged with others, filled with water. They then returned to the brewery with the fake merchandise.
As a precaution, AB Inbev destroyed an entire batch of beer so as not to let a possible production error cause further damage. A little less than 35,000 barrels were recalled in the United States where at least 2,100 barrels of water had been sent.
The brewer then carried out his own investigation using a private detective, who was able to follow a shipment of 420 barrels to Zaventem. There were at least six such exchanges in total. The number of diverted barrels, however, might not be determined. AB Inbev’s lawyer spoke of “thousands” during the trial.
The two defendants have already been convicted several times before criminal courts: the first perpetrator for ordinary thefts, just like the second, who was also part of an organized gang which committed thefts.
1699905506
#stolen #barrels #beer #Inbev #men #received #months #prison
