Two pallets of Zotac GeForce RTX 5090 graphics cards valued at about R$2.5 million (roughly $470,000) went missing at Guarulhos International Airport in São Paulo, Brazil. Distributor Oderço publicized the loss after seeking answers. Subsequent reports say police identified three airport workers suspected of helping remove the shipment, while a card linked by its serial number appeared for sale online.
Key takeaways
- Oderço says the shipment contained two pallets of Zotac RTX 5090 cards and represents an unprecedented loss in its 38-year history.
- Brazilian media reports say two outsourced forklift operators and a checker were identified as suspects.
- A Zotac RTX 5090 listed on OLX reportedly matched a missing card’s serial number; the listing was later removed.
The investigation is ongoing, and the number of cards involved has not been confirmed. Reports estimate the shipment’s cost at around $470,000, while some coverage puts its value closer to $495,000.
What happened to the shipment
Oderço, an electronics and IT distributor, said the two pallets were expected at Guarulhos, one of Latin America’s busiest airports. Its CEO, Oderço Matos, said the company had received no adequate explanation and turned to social media to seek answers. The airport operator said responsibility for clarifying the incident rests with the competent authorities.
Reports citing police information say two outsourced forklift operators allegedly moved the pallets from a warehouse and loaded them onto a truck, while a third employee—the checker—may have released the shipment in the system to clear electronic controls. Authorities reportedly identified the three workers. The accounts also give dates that do not clearly align: the shipment was reported to have arrived on September 20, while the suspected removal was dated September 21 and customs registration and release were reported later. The sequence has not been publicly reconciled.
Serial-number match draws attention
A Brazilian television report identified a Zotac Gaming RTX 5090 offered on OLX for more than $6,000. Images in the listing reportedly showed a serial number associated with the missing shipment. The listing was subsequently taken down, but reports say the seller’s identity has not been made public. The serial-number match is a reported investigative lead, not confirmation that the full shipment has been recovered.
Why the cards are a high-value target
The RTX 5090 is Nvidia’s flagship consumer GPU, with 32GB of GDDR7 memory, and remains difficult to find at regular retail prices. High demand and limited availability have pushed asking prices well above the card’s $1,999 launch price in some markets. For PC builders and buyers, this case is a reminder that scarce, high-value components can attract resale activity—and that serial numbers may help connect individual hardware to a shipment under investigation.
The precise quantity lost remains unknown. One report estimated at least 63 cards using Brazilian retail prices, but that is an estimate rather than a confirmed inventory count. Police and airport authorities have not publicly resolved how the pallets left the airport or whether the merchandise has been recovered.
Via Tom’s Hardware