Thieves in Hungary have made off with an entire riverside artificial beach that had 6,000 cubic meters of sand, beach huts, shops and furniture. Cross-border thieves are to be suspected because at part of the Schengen zone there is no border controls between Hungary and other EU states. Hungarian authorities also believe that the stolen material has been shipped across the border to be sold.

Land-locked Hungary doesn't have beaches; hence tons of sand were used to make the riverside as real as possible. But managers who cleaned up and covered the leisure park for winter were taken aback to discover that thieves had carted off 6,000 cubic meters of sand and playground rides, huts and even the wooden shops.

The border control between EU states in Europe is likely to end, as eight EU states from the former communist bloc, with Hungary, have joined the Schengen zone.