60 Minutes: How 24,000 Bottles of Guy Fieri’s Santo Tequila Vanished in a High‑Tech Highway Heist
In a high‑tech highway heist recounted on 60 Minutes, about 24,000 bottles of Guy Fieri’s Santo Tequila—distilled in western Mexico, cleared at Laredo, Texas, and loaded into two semitrucks bound for the brand’s Lansdale, Pennsylvania warehouse—never arrived despite GPS traces showing the trucks near the destination; the shipment, worth over $1 million, was described on camera by Fieri and Santo Spirits CEO Dan Butkus. Investigators say thieves used a “double‑brokering” scam—where a logistics firm re‑outsourced to fake front companies using phony letterheads, emails and phone numbers—and bought time with spoofed GPS and video plus fabricated mechanical‑issue messages; CargoNet investigator Keith Lewis notes U.S. businesses lost an estimated $230 million to cargo theft last year.
📌 Key Facts
- About 24,000 bottles of Guy Fieri’s Santo Tequila — valued at over $1 million — vanished after being loaded into two semitrucks bound from Laredo, Texas, to Santo Tequila’s warehouse in Lansdale, Pennsylvania; the tequila was distilled in western Mexico and the trucks never arrived despite GPS traces showing proximity to the warehouse.
- 60 Minutes detailed the theft as a high‑tech highway heist and provided a timeline of how the cargo disappeared, including on‑camera accounts from Guy Fieri and Santo Spirits CEO Dan Butkus about the company’s reaction.
- The thieves employed a 'double brokering' scam: a logistics firm outsourced the load to a trucking company that then re‑outsourced the shipment to fake front companies using phony letterheads, emails and phone numbers.
- To buy time and deceive the shipper, the criminals spoofed GPS and video feeds and sent fabricated mechanical‑issue messages, including staged 'broken down' truck videos.
- Industry investigator Keith Lewis of CargoNet is cited in the reporting; CargoNet estimates U.S. businesses lost more than $230 million to cargo theft last year.
📰 Sources (3)
- Detailed description of the 'double brokering' scam used: a logistics firm outsourced to a trucking company that re‑outsourced to fake front companies using phony letterheads, emails and phone numbers.
- Operational tactics the thieves used to buy time: spoofed GPS/video and fabricated mechanical‑issue messages to the shipper.
- Named industry investigator: Keith Lewis of CargoNet cited and quoted; CargoNet estimate that U.S. businesses lost more than $230 million to cargo theft last year.
- Shipment routing specifics: tequila distilled in western Mexico, cleared at Laredo, Texas, then loaded into two semitrucks bound for Santo Tequila's warehouse in Lansdale, Pennsylvania; the two trucks carried about 24,000 bottles valued at over $1 million.
- On‑camera quotes from Guy Fieri and Santo Spirits CEO Dan Butkus describing the timeline and the company’s reaction.
- Detailed reporting on the theft method (double‑brokering, GPS spoofing, staged 'broken down' truck video) as explained in the 60 Minutes segment.
- A precise chain of custody: distilled in western Mexico → cleared at Laredo, TX → loaded into two semitrucks bound for Lansdale, PA, then never arrived despite GPS traces showing proximity to the warehouse.