Couple allegedly stole $4,000+ bottle of liquor from Tempe restaurant

TEMPE, Ariz. – An upscale Tempe restaurant is asking for help to identify a couple suspected of making off with a bottle of liquor said to be worth $4,000. 

“You know, I’ve been in this world for 43 years, and I haven’t ever been robbed like this,” said John DeVries with the Three Thirty Three Restaurant, located near Scottsdale Road and Loop 202 in Tempe.

What we know:

The incident happened on the night of May 4, and surveillance video shows a man and a woman standing by a table when the woman grabs a bottle from a cart, and puts it in her purse.

The bottle of liquor in question is a Louis XIII cognac. A listing on liquor store Total Wine & More’s website shows one bottle of the cognac can be purchased for $4,149.99.

“We’re a very high-end Asian-inspired steakhouse. We do a lot of tableside experiences, and the Louis XIII is a white-gloved tableside experience,” said DeVries. “It’s all about the visual. When people see the cart, and they see it rolling around, and they see the Louis XIII and all the other liquor that was on here, it’s an experience.”

Dig deeper:

DeVries describes the couple’s behavior before the bottle of Louis XIII Cognac was swiped:

“They came in and made a fake reservation under a fake name, fake phone number,” DeVries said. “[They] came in late, sat down, ordered appetizers and starters, and that was it. Started to complain a little bit, and they got up, asked to go smoke and we don’t allow smoking outside, so I guess they went out the front. She came back in. He was blocking the view of the manager, and she came in and on camera, we see her putting it in her purse.”

The restaurant has filed a report with the Tempe Police Department.

“You didn’t need to rob us. You didn’t need to come in and steal. Stealing from me, stealing from this family here, that’s not happening. We’re on you. We’re gonna get you. We’re gonna prosecute you,” DeVries said.

Officials with the Kaos Hospitality Group, which owns the restaurant, say the couple left in a black SUV with license plate number 34A8H5.

What you can do:

Anyone with information is being asked to come forward.

Crime and Public Safety