DORAL, FLA. (WSVN) - A line cook at a Venezuelan restaurant in Doral was arrested after, police said, he stole three recipe books containing trade secrets from his employer.
According to an arrest report, 50-year-old Carlos Francisco Gottberg Marquez was taken into custody Monday on a felony charge.
“You got arrested for theft of trade secrets,” said Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Mindy S. Glazer.
Police said the thefts occurred at Mordisco Miami, a restaurant known for its Venezuelan-style steaks, appetizers and handmade arepas, located at 10355 NW 41st St.
Cesar Gonzalez, the restaurant’s owner and chef, said he felt betrayed.
“It’s the heart of the restaurant,” said Gonzalez.
Gonzalez said one of the stolen books shared how exactly to prepare the restaurant’s signature meals.
Speaking in Spanish, he said the instructions inside were detailed, from showing temperatures, to which spices to use and several other components to prepare each meal.
Authorities said the trade secrets were valued very highly.
“Recipes are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars,” said Doral Police Chief Edwin Lopez.
According to police, Gottberg Marquez had been working at Mordisco for about a month.
Investigators said surveillance video showed the suspect removing two of the restaurant’s recipe books from the kitchen without authorization on Oct. 12, followed by a third book on Oct. 19.
According to the report, police caught Gottberg Marquez in possession of the cookbooks at a second job at a smoothie and sandwich shop, just a few blocks away from Mordisco.
“We don’t know if he was sent by another criminal enterprise to take this for a fee, but this person was in possession of these cookbooks,” said Lopez. “He did it on two separate occasions. Through CCTV cameras, the owner of the restaurant immediately notified law enforcement officers.”
Gonzalez said he’s relieved his restaurant’s secret recipes were safely returned.
Gottberg Marquez was booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center and faces one count of theft of trade secrets, a third-degree felony.
He has since bonded out of jail.
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