POLICE in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province seized nearly 10,000 bottles of Lafite, famous chateau wine from France, in a vacant villa house in the city's suburban Longwan District.
If genuine, this batch of red wine is worth up to 100 million yuan (US$16 million) based on the market price of Chateau Lafite Rothschild. But police suspect these are fakes and hold clues to an underground workshop.
Each year only 50,000 bottles of Lafite are imported into China. It is unbelievable that one fifth of the total were stored in this house, a local newspaper, City Express, reported today.
The house owner, surnamed Zou, reported to police that he was surprised to find his house, vacant for nine years, was stacked with the world's most expensive wine. He denied any involvement in the case.
Police found the house was equipped with an iron gate and guarded by five fierce dogs, including two Tibetan mastiffs. Except some old newspapers and empty cigarette packs, there was no trace of human activity in the house.
Police later found the dog keeper and the old man said he was hired to feed dogs and he didn't have his employer's phone number.
Lafite is very popular among China's nouveau-riche. But it is widely believed that some 70 percent of Chateaux Lafite Rothschild in China is fake.
Landmark building should respect the public's feeling
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