Tomato thieves caught red handed

AFTER being alerted by a furious farmer who rang the National Police to alert them to the theft of several hundred kilos of tomatoes from his property, the officers sped into action in the area of Dos Hermanas in Sevilla.

It appears that three people threatened the farmer before removing the fruit but according to him, the bright red skins hid a toxic secret as they had recently been sprayed with pesticide and would therefore be unfit to eat for some time.

Thanks to an accurate description of the thieves and their vehicles, the National Police quickly identified the miscreants who were all members of the same family and discovered the tomatoes in their cars. Following this, they raided the property of the accused, revealing other illicit fruit and vegetables.

Upon further investigation it came to light that the two men and one woman who had been arrested had built illegal warehouses together with neighbours and between them they stored stolen fruit and vegetables which were later sold in markets. 

A total of four tons of stolen tomatoes, melons and watermelons were recovered but as most had been sprayed with pesticide the haul was declared unfit for human consumption.