Fajitas are delicious - there's no denying that. Whether they come pre-rolled or sizzling AF on a hot plate at some fancy restaurant where you make them yourself, they're goddamn amazing (provided you don't dig in too quickly and end up burning your tongue).
Well, one man seems to have taken such an interest in the Tex-Mex food that it's landed him in some very hot water.
Gilberto Escamilla has been sentenced to half a century behind bars for stealing $1.2 million worth of fajitas.
The 53-year-old worked at the Cameron County Juvenile Justice Department and over the course of nine years would accept 800-pound deliveries of fajitas, selling them onto his own customers.
Escamilla's near decade-long heist was discovered when he took a day off for a medical appointment.
That same day, a driver from the Labatt Food Service called the Justice Department's kitchen, saying they were ready to offload another delivery - but the staff member who took the call was confused because they've never sold fajitas.
The caller explained that they had been making that delivery for the past nine years and everyone quickly put two and two together.
He was fired the next day and when police searched his home they found the stolen goods stashed in his fridge. When they tallied up everything, authorities worked out that he had managed to steal $1,251,578 (£893,695) worth of the food.
That is a lot of fajitas.
But apparently the defendant also admitted to stealing brisket, pork chops, sausage and various types of chicken during his nine-year crime spree.
During the trial, prosecutors demanded he be forced to wear a GPS tracking bracelet because the Mexican border was so close. Despite Escamilla's lawyer's pleas that it was unnecessary, Judge Louis Sorrola sided with the prosecution.
According to the Brownsville Herald, while testifying, the 53-year-old said: "It was selfish. It started small and got bigger and out of control. It got to the point where I couldn't control it anymore."
Advert
Because Escamilla worked as a public servant, prosecutors wanted the judge to come down hard on him so that other people in his position wouldn't try to abuse their position.
District Attorney Luis V Saenz said last year when the arrest was made: "If it wasn't so serious, you'd think it was a Saturday Night Live skit. But this is the real thing."
He was allowed a few moments to say goodbye to his family before being led away to start his half-century sentence.
Featured Image Credit: Miansari66 (Creative Commons)Topics: Police, America, Food, News, crime, arrested, court