When burglars break into a home or business, their primary targets are usually electronics, jewelry, and cash. But history has shown that humans will steal anything that isn’t nailed down—and in some cases, things that are. Below are some of the strangest items that have ever gone mysteriously missing.

A Beach’s Worth of Sand

We’re not talking about swiping a thimbleful of sand to keep as a memento. No, the situation was far more dire when Jamaican thieves stole an estimated 500 truckloads of sand from a Coral Spring beach. The logistics that must have been involved in pulling off the hefty feat led authorities to believe that local hotels and resorts must be involved, each seeking a piece of postcard-pretty beachfront to attract wealthy clientele.

6,875 Jars of Nutella

As a kid, you might have swiped a spoonful of Nutella when your Mom wasn’t looking, but thieves in Bad Hersfeld, Germany, nabbed a lot more than that when they stole a refrigerated truck packed with confectionaries. The truck was reported to contain over five tons of Nutella, as well as Kinder Eggs and other popular treats. German authorities stated that the stolen goods could be worth upward of $80,000—a pretty sweet windfall for the unscrupulous thieves.

A 10-Ton Bridge

How does one steal a 10-ton bridge? It’s simple: just tell locals that you’ve been hired to remove it. That’s exactly what a group of Czech metal scrappers did in 2012, when they successfully dismantled, and presumably sold, a Slakovian bridge. The hustlers didn’t just don construction hats and call it a day; they also arrived with fake, official-looking documents. By the time locals caught on, the crooks—and the bridge—were long gone, never to be seen again.

Glacier Ice

If you were rich, why would you drink beverages cooled by normal, boring ice, when you could drink ice from an actual glacier? That’s the thinking that led a Chilean man to Patagonia’s slowly-melting—and protected—Jorge Montt, inside Bernardo O’Higgins National Park. He successfully made off with about five tons of glacial ice before authorities caught up to him. Sadly, the rich and famous must still drink beverages full of normal-water ice, as opposed to expensive “designer” ice cubes stolen from an actual glacier.

Protect Yourself from Theft with Charlotte Access Controls

Thieves who break into your home or business are probably not targeting sand or glacier ice, but the effects of their crime can be just as financially devastating. You can secure your property and get peace of mind with James Access Controls’ Charlotte security devices. Our remote gate operators, security fences, surveillance cameras, and security systems can ensure your assets stay under lock and key. To learn more, please contact us here.