Thieves Swipe $70K in Pabst Beer From California Warehouse in Two Same-Day Heists

It’s a story that sounds like a punchline, but the theft of $70,000 worth of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer from a Montclair warehouse is very real. On August 17, thieves first made off with a truckload of beer destined for Tucson, Arizona, a loss of about $45,000. Less than an hour later, a second crew, this time posing as a subcontracting company with fake documents, rolled up and drove away with another $25,000 in product. All told, that’s roughly 34,000 cans, more than 1,500 cases, and around 40,000 pounds of beer. Montclair police are investigating both thefts from the same Anheuser-Busch distribution center.

Beyond the staggering scale of the loss, the story has captured attention because of Pabst’s response. Instead of a stodgy corporate statement, the company launched a social media campaign, posting a countdown on Instagram aimed directly at the thief. The tone is playful, joking that they don’t blame anyone for wanting to brag about having a ton of PBR, but that they wish it had been acquired the“honorable way.”A postscript quickly adds, however:“P.s. this is real and we are deadly serious.”It’s a clever mix of humor and gravity that has people talking.

For Sacramento listeners, it’s a fun, quirky news story that feels far removed from our usual farm-to-fork and Kings chatter. But it does make you wonder about the logistics here. Could one person really move that much beer? And what would your neighbors think if they saw you unloading 1,500 cases of PBR into your garage? We want to hear from you. What would you do with that much beer if it just landed in your lap?