A possible nut smuggling ring in 2021? No surprises here.

During a routine audit at California’s Touchstone Pistachio Company discovered 42,000 pounds of their precious green seeds were missing. Following their revelation, the company requested an investigation by Tulare County Sheriff’s Office Agricultural Crimes Unit into the possible theft.

The TCSO shared the sleuthing process that resulted in them discovering that the tractor trailer containing their pistachios had been moved from the Montemayor Trucking lot in Delano to a nearby lot.

The culprit? 34-year-old Alberto Montemayor of Montemayor trucking, who planned on moving the pistachios from 2000-pound sacks into smaller bags for re-sale. The recovered pistachios were safely returned to Touchstone Pistachio Company.

Who knew there was a black market for pistachios? Can someone make this into a movie?

Nut-smuggling ring! California trucker steals 42,000 pounds of pistachios, leads to discovery of possible nut-smuggling ring https://t.co/7XRMUrYeS7

— Leonard Lloyd (@LLLloyd1) June 22, 2021

Photo| iStock