Local PBCC Coin Show Robbery
PeakRarities
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Today was my first time setting up at my local Palm Beach Coin Club Show. I planned on setting up last month, but wasn’t able to make it. Other than that, I have been to the show on multiple occasions but only as a buyer.
It’s a show where most buyers are looking for bullion and common date Morgans, so I was actually surprised that I sold two >3k coins today, basically my inventory is too nice for here.
Something very unusual happened when an elderly dealer named Mike was robbed in the parking lot. Mike was in the room for a while, and then he went out to his car to grab something. As he was leaving his car in the parking lot to come back inside, he was pushed to the ground and his bag was taken from him. His bag had about 3k worth of coins in it, one of them being a 1925 $20 in NGC 63. In fact, he had two double eagles in there, but luckily I bought one of them before he went to the parking lot. When Mike came back in, his knees were bloody and his hands were scraped up. About half a dozen palm beach sheriffs came to take his statement, and the America polish club is going to get the security footage to the authorities as soon as they can.
The show is manned by 2 security guards, but unfortunately this happened while they were taking a break or taking lunch or something. They should not have abandoned their post out front, one of them should have remained while the other one went to break. The club president, Tony Swicer, told me this was the first time something like this has ever happened. They have had petty theft within the show, but never a full on robbery like this.
Unfortunately, Mike wasn’t able to make out a license plate, but from what he could make out, it was two Hispanic males who jumped into a black cargo van before they took off down the road.
Comments
Damn. That is terrible.
Impossible to price in robbery when tallying the cost of attending a show.
That is sickening.
Terrible to hear this news. Please don’t post photos of victims or witnesses giving statements. This could could deter people from coming forward with witness accounts of a crime. Some people already don’t want to get involved and will literally walk right over a victim to get out away. It also jeopardizes their privacy and security. We need to also be considerate of the victims and their feelings as well. I would be willing to go out on a limb and say the bad guys are on this site. What better place to keep informed and find victims. Just my two cents, again.
I think this thread should be pulled to protect the victims privacy.
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Wow, sorry to hear about this. Pretty brazen and I hope he’s caught soon.
I used to hang with some of those guys from the PB club “back in the day”. They liked me, because I would pay close to Bid (back when the Greysheet was way out of whack) for raw better date/grade large cents, Barbers, walkers, type, etc.
He's right about the witness photo. You should delete that.
I calculated the odds. There is a 0.000000000001% chance that the thieves are on this site. There's also a 0% chance that they did any research on potential victims.
Would it make a difference if I told you that the victims wallet, cell phone, and ID were in the bag that was stolen?
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A difference to what? That has nothing to do with the completely unnecessary witness/victim photo.
Oh for goodness sake, sure. Its a photo of the back of someone's head, white hair, from 100 yards away. What difference does it make when you can't identify the person? You guys are too much sometimes....
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Unfortunately that description in Florida is rather hard to use. Hope that they find them.
God bless all who believe in him. Do unto others what you expect to be done to you. Dubbed a "Committee Secret Agent" by @mr1931S on 7/23/24. Founding member of CU Anti-Troll League since 9/24/24.
The person did not give permission for use of the photo. The photo is of zero benefit to the purpose of this thread. All we're asking for is a little respect for the privacy of that individual. If that seems "too much"...
Sorry to hear of this, hope the dealer is doing ok. I would guess from earlier discussions this would fall under the category of a burglary vs a robbery as force was used.
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I didn’t see the photo. Was the guy in the public view?
Having fun while switching things up and focusing on a next level PCGS slabbed 1950+ type set, while still looking for great examples for the 7070.
In combination with @air4mdc's outlandish comment, yes it is too much. Are photos ever actually "necessary"? What about news reporters using photos of police presence? What about photos of dinners at a coin show? Sure theyre not "necessary", but they just go along with the thread.
My photos get posted without my permission all the time, and often its an unflattering photo where my gut is out and I look like a slob. You couldn't see the guys face, it was from all the way across the parking lot. All you could see was that it was a caucasian elderly man with white hair. Palm Beach county, FL so that really narrows it down....
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Fortunately the palm tree is indifferent.
Hey, I wasn't buying into the rest of air4's comments.
Years ago at our local coin club, a reporter stopped by too ask some coin questions. She brought a photographer with her. You should have seen the uproar. Personally, I didn't care. But a lot of collectors are very paranoid about their identification as coin collectors. All I was asking was for some sensitivity to that.
And I obliged…but I’m just saying that if the person is not identifiable in the picture, then it really makes no difference whatsoever.
Also, like @Jacques_Loungecoque mentioned it was in public view. Any person driving down lake worth road would have seen him giving his statement.
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See my more recent comment. I have seen collectors throw a fit when a camera appeared. I really don't think a suggestion for sensitivity to that possibility is a negative trait. It is not nit picking, it is a lived reality. But, I prefer to pick nits to hurling insults.
This is terrible. Coin shows are potentially dangerous and please everyone be careful. I have a friend who is a coin dealer who no longer sets up at shows. He says it’s just not worth it to risk his inventory and safety.
I didn’t have a problem with the deleted picture. The picture was the back of someone’s head with grey/white hair from a distance. It was impossible to even remotely identify who the subject was. Pictures help tell a better story. I prefer watching a football game on television rather than listen to a radio broadcast.
I appreciate it. It was a humble suggestion, hardly worth all the drama that followed. But thank you for listening.
The photo was of the back of someone's head, outdoors and from a good distance away. You would think most coin collectors have active warrants out reading some of the comments.
Tally so far.
6 posts about the incident
18 about whether or not the picture should or shouldn’t be posted.
😂
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Probability of being robbed multiplied by expected losses. If you have insurance, the actuaries have already factored it in. What’s worrisome is what seems like an increase in the rate of these incidences, although I’m not sure if they’re actually up or if they’re just being reported on this forum more frequently.
Nothing is as expensive as free money.
@PeakRarities I have the utmost respect for you and you are a stand-up person for removing the picture. I am assured that you meant no harm in it’s posting. I apologize to the you and the members here for any drama I created.
How deplorable of you to post a photo like that.
Can you repost it?
I didn't get a chance to see it before you edited it out.
I think it could be a bit of both. Also adding the increased number of shows throughout the year. Especially new shows popping up where some of the security protocols the more experienced promoters use may not be known to clubs and new promoters.
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It’s been a couple of years since I’ve set up at a show. The increase in thefts where the dealer is followed tens or hundreds of miles has me planning new security measures before I start doing local shows again.
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That’s terrible, the robbery that is. Very sad that this kind of robbery happens at coin shows. I might want to set up occasionally at small shows once I’m retired and hate that I’m going to have to be so cautious
Mr_Spud
Wait a sec......what if someone zoomed in on the license plates of the cars in the parking lot?
Dan, you'd better be sure these cannot be seen! 
I didn't see this thread in time to see the contested photo, but it sounds like it wasn't meaningful to ID anyone.
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Could you please delete the picture with all of the police cars? After viewing that I was restless all night. It made me uncomfortable.
Sometimes I think that animals are smarter than humans, animals would never allow the dumbest one to lead the pack
Looked sort of like Spencer Tracy from the back in Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.
I've grown inured to reports of dealer car burglaries coming home from shows, and maybe even a little complacent, given that I'm only a small-time collector but I have to say that this incident has given me a big jolt, especially since it happened in broad daylight.
I'm glad that the victim was not seriously injured. I'm going to be 1,000% more vigilant when attending shows from here on out.
I believe the victim was targeted because he was elderly and the perps knew he wouldn't put up much of a fight. If you are an elderly coin dealer, be particularly careful out there and travel with a younger companion if at all possible.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
And hope that your wife believes that she is there for protection.
I am 6'1", 240 lbs and I will work for coins.
Neo offers you his protection.
I am a newer collector (started April 2020), and I primarily focus on U.S. Half Cents and Type Coins. Early copper is my favorite.
Basically it was a picture that showed the hood of a car and a guy with white hair and an orange shirt talking to police behind the car facing away from the photographer.
God bless all who believe in him. Do unto others what you expect to be done to you. Dubbed a "Committee Secret Agent" by @mr1931S on 7/23/24. Founding member of CU Anti-Troll League since 9/24/24.
Wow an actual robbery. That’s horrible!!!
BHNC #248 … 130 and counting.
It has been my experience in life that crooks work harder at their "job', than regular people work at real jobs. I also would not be surprised if there were more people involved in the theft.
5 years ago at the MN. Ren. Fest my family and me were sitting in a food court. I noticed a young lady who "acted' like she was in line(while talking on the phone), but she never got any food. Then I noticed there were 2 young men who over and over again passed through the line of people at that stand and "accidentally' bumped into the person just leaving with food. The young men would then go over to this old woman in a wheelchair and pat her on the back.
We were 10 feet from a security booth so I pointed out what I thought was going on. both young men got away but they caught the girl on the phone and i was told later that the woman in the wheelchair had over 2 dozen wallets. Sometimes you have to pay attention in life, but having said that I repeat, The crooks often work harder than average people so be alert. James
I think I can identify the species of palm tree in the parking lot from this photo...
Since there hasn’t been any large cents posted lately, I’ll go ahead and attribute this as a Royal Palm…..
Please blur the picture of the unidentifiable person and repost so we can not exactly see what it is we're not meant to see.
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Appears to have a nice original bark on it too. Slight bend near the top, but doesn't detract. Might be worth having someone come out to grade it.
Just to clarify my request to remove the picture, it was not so much about an identification of a person as much as it was out of respect and dignity for the individual, assuming it was the victim. If it was a witness, yes, bad guys do retaliate against witnesses. @PeakRarities did the right thing. I respect him for that.
You realize that you made a parody out of a serious thread.
HE didn't...
I now wish I could see the picture
Thanks for the report Dan. Heard a story like this couple of weeks ago in the sports card industry. Very unfortunate.
Perhaps we can petition Apple to disable Smartphones within 500 feet of coin shows. That will make us all safer/
Terrible news.
My gut reaction tells me I'd look into the past history of these two security guards who both left their post.
Sounds a bit suspicious to me.
Probably nothing, but I'd look into it for sure.
"“Those who sacrifice liberty for security/safety deserve neither.“(Benjamin Franklin)
"I only golf on days that end in 'Y'" (DE59)
C'mon now, people get jacked for $5 or $10 dollars every day. You walk out into a parking lot with $10,000 in a bag and can't believe someone robbed you?
Sometimes I think that animals are smarter than humans, animals would never allow the dumbest one to lead the pack
That’s really horrible. And right there in the show parking lot. How brazen those thugs were.
I had a guy come up to my car at a stoplight at busy intersection when I was taking a bc of coins to the sdb near my workplace years ago. At a stop light but the locked door stopped him and he turned away and walked. There is no way he could have seen the bc or known coins in the car. To this day I wonder wth. I saw him coming, locked the door just in time. Hijacking attempt? He was just coming up to get a ride right? Wrong.