More than 40 bottles of stolen luxury liquor, Moutai, were discovered in a water pit in eastern China.

The video was filmed in Heze City in Shandong Province on January 23.

Duty officers and rescue team members were seen salvaging the bottles, some of which were still caked in mud.

Two days later, on January 25, an employee from the Heze Lightning Volunteer Rescue Centre revealed that they had recovered more than seven boxes of Moutai liquor, totalling over 40 bottles.

Astonishingly, the bottles were largely undamaged and still fit for consumption. The incident is linked to a theft case where three men stole the liquor, comprising five boxes of 43-degree Moutai and two boxes of 53-degree Moutai, with a combined market value of over 200,000 yuan (£22,000). Some bottles were discarded individually, while others were thrown in whole boxes.

Contrary to initial reports, the scene of the incident was not a foul-smelling ditch but a water pit with a thin layer of ice on the surface.

"We broke the ice and found the water was two to three metres deep. We used a pump to drain the water, revealing the black mud underneath, which made it appear dirty," explained the rescue centre worker.

The thieves had dumped the stolen Moutai in this pit and even recorded a video of their act. The police, using the video footage, tracked down the thieves and the location where the Moutai was discarded.

The Lightning Volunteer Rescue Centre was then called in by the police to assist in retrieving the valuable liquor.

The video was provided by local media with permission.

1月23日，山东菏泽牡丹区姚胡同村一臭水沟惊现40多瓶飞天茅台酒，多位执勤民警和救援队员在现场打捞，部分被打捞上来的飞天茅台酒瓶上面还带着淤泥。
1月25日，菏泽市闪电志愿救援中心的一名工作人员透露，一共打捞上来7箱多茅台酒，共计40多瓶，茅台酒几乎没有受损，还能正常饮用。此事涉及盗窃案件，酒是赃物，三个男子偷的，有五箱是43°的，有两箱53°的，市场价值总计20多万元，有的是拆箱扔进去的，有的是整箱扔进去的。
“事发地点不是臭水沟，是一个水坑，水面有结冰。我们把冰破碎后，发现水有两三米深，于是用抽水机将水抽走，露出底下黑色的淤泥，因此看上去有点脏。”该工作人员介绍，此事是有人偷盗茅台酒后扔进了上述水坑里，还特地拍下了视频。警方根据视频找到了偷盗者，也找到了扔茅台酒的位置，警方又求助了闪电志愿救援中心，他们接到通知才过来打捞茅台酒。