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Topics: Crime, Drugs, News, World News
Joshua Nair
German police made a wild discovery when they raided a pizzeria in the city of Düsseldorf, specifically with item 'number 40' on their menu.
Criminal director Michael Graf von Moltke revealed that police were tipped off in March by food inspectors who thought that something seemed a little bit off.
He spoke to reporters on Monday (21 October), and revealed that drug squad officers had been observing the restaurant since then and discovered why one of the pizzas was so popular among customers, according to German news agency dpa.
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It may be one of the most bizarre criminal stories of the year so far, and one that almost seems fictional, but Düsseldorf police actually investigated and apprehended those responsible for the crime after a raid.
But it didn't come out of nowhere either, as when the police eventually made their way to the apartment of the pizzeria manager, he decided to throw a bag of drugs out the window, which the authorities said 'fell right into the arms of the police officers'.
It turned out that the restaurant owner had been selling pizza number 40 with a special side order... but it wasn't a garlic dip, it was cocaine instead.
The 36-year-old was released from custody after a few days, he reopened his business and continued to do the exact same thing with number 40, described by von Moltke as 'one of the best-selling pizzas'.
His bounty was made up of 1.6kg of cocaine, 400g of cannabis and €268,000 (US $290,378) in cash.
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Instead of arresting him straight away though, police took the chance to go beyond and investigate his supply chain and after some weeks, approximately 150 officers busted a massive drug ring in western Germany, where Düsseldorf is located.
Police arrested three suspects, which included the head of the operation, who was just 22.
As well as this, businesses and homes of another 12 suspects were raided in their attempts to bring the operation down.
During their numerous raids, they discovered two cannabis plantations in the nearby towns of Mönchengladbach and Solingen, which featured 300 and 60 plants each.
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Not only did they find drugs, but stabbing weapons along with some cash and luxury watches.
Following these discoveries, the pizzeria manager tried to flee abroad, but was arrested and is currently in custody.
In accordance with Germany privacy rules, none of the suspects' names were released, while police did not reveal how much the 'special order' at the pizzeria actually cost.