1,000 beer kegs worth £100k seized in raid

Police seized 1,000 aluminium beer kegs worth over £100,000 last Friday (13 January) after a coordinated raid on sites in north London.

Officers attended two addresses in Tottenham and Edmonton to seize the aluminium beer kegs which were being stored in shipping containers at the two sites.

A 19-year-old man and an 18-year-old woman were arrested at one of the sites on suspicion of handling stolen goods.

They are both currently in custody at a north London police station.

Officers from Haringey had been working closely with local public houses and Kegwatch to prevent keg thefts.

Kegwatch work on behalf of the brewery industry to try and stop the theft of kegs, casks and dispense gas cylinders.

It is believed that each individual beer keg was worth between approximately £75 and £165, with the kegs retrieved ranging in size from 50 litre to 100 litre containers.

Detective Inspector Steven Dryden of Haringey CID said: “In the last ten years, the price of metal has soared 400%; it’s a valuable commodity that makes it an attractive prospect to thieves.

“Thieves and unscrupulous dealers will find industries are not prepared to suffer any further and police in Haringey will not hesitate to take action against anyone who is found to be involved in this form of criminality on the borough.”

Security director of Kegwatch David Belcher said: “Stainless steel beer kegs are used in pubs and clubs across the country.

Stolen kegs are often disposed of illegally through illicit outlets and scrap yards.

We work hard with police forces up and down the country to stop this from happening and as a result we have had many successful prosecutions.

“Today was the result of a coordinated pre-planned operation between police in Haringey and Kegwatch.

We really appreciate the work the police have done for the brewery industry (today).”