---
title: "Thieves Solve Eternal Riddle of How Many Oranges You Can Fit in a Compact Car"
description: "If you're a fan of citrus fruit and volumetric puzzles, then we've got a story for you: Authorities in Spain busted a crew of thieves after they stole more than four tons of fresh oranges and crammed their loot into two tiny compact cars, Europa Press reports."
date: "2018-01-30"
modified: "2018-01-30"
authors:
  - name: "Kyle Cheromcha"
    job_title: "Editor-in-Chief"
    link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/kyle-cheromcha"
url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/18086/thieves-solve-eternal-riddle-of-how-many-oranges-you-can-fit-in-a-compact-car"
categories:
  - "News"
tags:
  - "Compact Cars"
  - "Crime"
  - "Food"
  - "heist"
  - "police chase"
  - "Spain"
---

# Thieves Solve Eternal Riddle of How Many Oranges You Can Fit in a Compact Car

![](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/images-by-url-td/content/2018/01/untitled-1.jpg>)
*\<em\>www.thedrive.com</em>*

If you're a fan of citrus fruit and volumetric puzzles, then we've got a story for you: Authorities in Spain busted a [crew of thieves](<https://www.thedrive.com/news/17785/thieves-steal-80000-speed-camera-system-in-broad-daylight>) after they allegedly stole more than four tons of fresh oranges and crammed their loot into two tiny compact cars, [*Europa Press* reports.](<https://www.europapress.es/andalucia/sevilla-00357/noticia-denunciadas-cinco-personas-presunto-robo-4000-kilos-naranjas-nave-carmona-sevilla-20180126153807.html>)

The crew of a cargo ship docked at a port outside Seville, Spain notified authorities when nearly 9,000 pounds of oranges mysteriously disappeared from the facility last week. Police officers on a routine patrol soon spotted a small convoy of three vehicles—a subcompact Suzuki sedan, a small station wagon, and a panel van—driving suspiciously nearby and managed to stop them after a brief chase down a dirt road.

https://twitter.com/_/status/956905881492484096

Sure enough, [the officers found](<https://www.europapress.es/andalucia/sevilla-00357/noticia-denunciadas-cinco-personas-presunto-robo-4000-kilos-naranjas-nave-carmona-sevilla-20180126153807.html>) both passenger cars stuffed completely full of oranges, while the van looks to be hilariously underutilized in [pictures from the scene.](<https://twitter.com/EmergenciasSev/status/956905881492484096>) There are precious few bags in sight, just a whole lot of loose fruit in every nook and cranny. The whole thing looks like an episode of *Mythbusters* gone awry.

![message-editor%2F1517338397629-untitled-2.jpg](<https://www.thedrive.com/wp-content/uploads/message-editor/1517338397629-untitled-2.jpg>)
**Twitter | @EmergenciasSev**

The five suspects, a couple and their adult son plus another pair of brothers, told police they had driven from "very far away" and had simply been picking oranges up off the ground as they traveled. (Hey, you can never be too worried about scurvy, right?) Officers arrested the group, who were all charged with theft.

The report leaves us guessing just how the crew managed to get the oranges out of the ship and into their cars unnoticed, especially considering the haphazard packing job. Apparently, [not all heists](<https://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/15715/watch-this-gang-pull-a-fast-furious-style-heist-on-a-moving-semi-truck>) are created equal.

## Author
Overseeing an expert staff of writers and editors from his lair in Los Angeles, Kyle shapes The Drive’s singular approach to covering the automotive industry and car culture. He’s been with the site as a writer since 2017, taking over as editor in 2019. On a daily basis, Kyle is responsible for directing The Drive's editorial news and car review content strategies, setting special coverage priorities, managing complex reporting projects, and ensuring what you read on the page meets our high internal standards for quality and trustworthiness. He is also the executive producer of The Drive's YouTube channel, which was relaunched in February 2024 to great acclaim and has accumulated over 14M new views in its first year back on the scene. He hosts a biweekly series on the channel where he breaks down fascinating and complicated stories from the automotive world.

### Author social links  
[Bluesky](<https://bsky.app/profile/kylecheromcha.bsky.social>)  
[Instagram](<https://www.instagram.com/kylecheromcha>)  
[LinkedIn](<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-cheromcha-1550248a/>)