Restaurateur Caught Smuggling 38 Tons Of Food

Acquiring ingredients and paying taxes are arduous duties for any restaurateur, but one man in Switzerland is in hot water for thinking he could get around them by just smuggling all his restaurant supplies across the border.

According to The Local, the suspect owns multiple restaurants and catering operations in Eastern Switzerland. Considering that food is generally more expensive in Switzerland than in Austria and other neighboring countries, a multi-unit operator stands to save a lot of money if he can just buy all his supplies on the other side of the border. So the man simply drove his car into Austria, loaded the trunk with ingredients and alcohol, and drove back to Switzerland without telling anybody. It worked so well, he kept doing it for four years.

He allegedly brought over a ton of raw meat products, three tons of butters and oils, three tons of fruits and vegetables, and nearly 1,800 pounds of milk and cheese. He also brought over copious amounts of alcohol.

Somehow the restaurateur managed to keep that scam going and supply his restaurants with ingredients for four years without getting caught, avoiding nearly $40,000 in import duties in the process.

Unfortunately for the restaurateur, that is wildly illegal. He was finally caught this summer, and now he faces criminal charges for smuggling 38 tons of food and alcohol across the border into Switzerland.