1 Hams Surreptiously Stolen From Warehouse
The as-yet-unnamed man stole the hams from a curing warehouse in Huelva, Spain, where he worked from 2007 to 2013. Tasked with receiving the hams at delivery from suppliers, authorities said he intercepted thousands of them to sell himself, even using a messenger service to deliver them to customers.
2 Man Ordered to Repay More Than $520,000
The man was convicted of the theft, along with his wife, who was judged to be his accomplice. The pair have been ordered to repay more than $520,000 to the affected business. Although the man was eligible to serve six years in prison, his sentence was reduced to 11 months and 29 days because the case took so long to come to trial.
3 This Is No Ordinary Ham
The Guardian reports that Huelva is renowned worldwide for its production of jamón de jabugo, a highly exclusive type of ham granted rare culinary status. They’re made from blackfoot pigs, which during the last three months of their lives are fed exclusively with acorns and natural pastures in the Sierra de Aracena and Picos de Aroche park, environments that create “unique microclimatic conditions.” Each ham can sell for more than $500. The convicted ham thief made off with more than 100 of these super-premium pieces of pork.
4 It’s Not The Only Ham Theft Story In the News
Expensive ham is a more frequent target for theft than most may have thought. In 2016, a man was arrested for stealing seven legs of Iberico ham that were hanging over a bar (valued at $130 each). He was caught because a trail of pork fat led authorities from the site of the theft directly to his house. And in November 2020, video footage from a Madrid supermarket went viral after a husband and wife attempted to steal two legs of Serrano ham by hoisting them off the sales floor with a rope. The black market of stolen hams is reportedly worth millions of dollars.
5 Even Spam a Target for Thieves These Days
Ham—all forms of it, and we really mean all forms—is apparently a hot score for the sticky-fingered worldwide. At the opposite end of the food chain from fine artisanal Spanish jamon is Spam, the processed meat product available on the shelves of supermarkets everywhere. But inflation has made everything, even Spam, more expensive, and in New York City, Spam has become such a target for thieves that at least one local drugstore started locking the cans up in individual security boxes that can only be opened at checkout. ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb
