Ham theft worth more than $200,000 takes place in ‘unusual’ location in Spain

A Christmas delicacy in Spain has been targeted by thieves who stole 200,000 euros ($209,356) from a local family business that ships it around the world. The police are looking for these men who are now in possession of some very expensive ham.

The robbers took off 400 feet of the nation’s best Iberian ham that Jamones Eíriz of Corteconcepción, a gourmet purveyor, was supposed to ship to families around the world before the holiday season.

The ham is considered extremely rare and a carnivorous specialty because it has the “Jabugo Protected Designation of Origin” seal. The Iberian pig is acorn-fed and free-range, according to the website of the 200-year-old family business.

Police say at least five people were involved in the robbery, which is believed to be an inside job. The business lost a third of its ham in the theft.

Domingo Eíriz, one of the people who runs the family business, says he found out about the robbery after a worker noticed that a bunch of them were missing. He asked him: “Domingo, where are the hams, did you get them?”

Domingo says each leg costs more than 500 euros ($523). However, meat is sold by weight.

He is devastated by the robbery and says the people involved knew what they were doing as they stole “the third most valuable gourmet product in the world”.

He told Spanish television Antena 3: “When I saw they left, I told everyone not to touch anything.”

“They knew what they were doing and they did it right in the Christmas season with the orders we had. This is a waste of years of work.”

He suspects that someone on the inside was involved because the ham was stored in an unusual location where it was only brought in for labeling purposes.

Jamones Eíriz entered the business in 1818, with family members continuing the legacy. It has 20 employees, eight of whom are family members.

According to the company’s website, the Iberian pig “runs free in Andalusian nature” and can eat “up to 12 kilograms of acorns a day”. It also feeds on grass, roots, mushrooms and olives.