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Vines (symbolic photo)

Photo: Bodo Schackow/zb/DPA

In the middle of the night, a person in Spain breaks into a winery - but not to steal a few bottles or enjoy a fine wine for free. The unknown person intentionally spilled around 60,000 liters of high-quality wine with an estimated value of 2.5 million euros.

The alleged act of sabotage occurred on Sunday night in Castrillo de Duero, around 150 kilometers north of Madrid, and was recorded by security cameras. The Europa Press news agency and other Spanish media reported this on Monday, citing José Moro, the boss of the damaged Cepa 21 winery. It was certainly not an attempted theft, they said.

In the middle of the night, a masked person entered the winery's storage room around half past four and in less than a minute opened the taps of five steel tanks with wine from the luxury brands Malabrigo and Horcajo, among others, it was said. The video recordings showed that the unknown person apparently knew the area of ​​the winery in the renowned Ribera del Duero wine region well, said Moro.

The mysterious break-in poses a mystery. The media speculated that it could be an act of sabotage or revenge. The winery boss said they had a sneaking suspicion, but didn't want to say anything publicly so as not to hinder the police investigation.

kfr/dpa