A German man was caught trying to make off with some 24,000 litres of Italian sea water, police in the north Italian port city of Trieste said.
The 48-year-old was busted by police after a civilian saw him pumping water into 24 tanks. Police demanded that the man tip the water back into the sea and served him a fine of 1,549 euros (1,787 dollars).
He apparently wanted to use the water for an aquarium business.
A police spokeswoman told dpa on Tuesday that he was headed for the southern German state of Bavaria, some 500 kilometres to the north of Trieste.
– Dpa
