Newspaper coverage of FUN show robbery
Michigan
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Deputies are searching for a brazen band of masked robbers who stole roughly $4 million in some of the world's rarest coins at knifepoint at a busy luxury hotel on International Drive.
The heist was one of the largest in recent years, a security expert said Tuesday as details of the crime emerged.
The rarest of the stolen booty was a set of 1843 U.S. coins with a history that traces back to President John Tyler. The proof set contains 10 coins from a half penny to a $10 gold piece. Lloyds of London had insured them for $2 million, the coins' custodian said.
The stickup was the latest strike during the Florida United Numismatists' annual coin show and convention, which is one of the largest in the country.
Last year, about $450,000 worth of coins was nabbed by thieves who trailed their victims in at least five different cases up to 100 miles to take their loot.
Convention organizers have since added more security.
"In the last year -- for whatever reason -- it has become more commonplace," numismatists convention coordinator Cindy Wibker said.
"Nobody would have thought they would have been so brazen," said Robert Brueggeman, executive director of the Professional Numismatists Guild and owner of Positive Protection, which coordinated security at the convention.
The owner of the company in custody of the coins during the robbery asked not to be identified because of fear for his and his employees' safety.
The most recent attack took place Saturday in the valet parking line at the Peabody Hotel, while an employee of the Minnesota dealer in charge of the coins unloaded them from the rear of a Nissan Xterra.
A robber wearing a surgical mask and a hooded sweater grabbed the employee from behind, held a double-edged knife to his throat and forced him to the ground, a sheriff's report states.
The hooded man kept witnesses at bay with his knife while two other men, also in surgical masks, helped grab a Samsonite suitcase containing the $2 million set as well as other coins and items from the SUV.
The attackers sped off in a brown Mitsubishi sedan, the report states.
Detectives say it's unclear whether Saturday's heist is linked to last year's thefts, which occurred during the same convention. It's also too early to say whether the robbers are part of an organized ring or the theft was a one-time hit, they said.
The robbery rattled the Minnesota man who was taking care of the coins for their owner. The $2 million coin set was part of only two remaining complete sets of the 1843 coins, which were specially designed for collectors, the custodian said.
When the coins were made, they were polished to a mirror finish and set inside a Moroccan leather case lined with velvet, the custodian said. Coin collecting was rare in those days, so few of these sets were made.
These coins recently become more valuable because the custodian and the coins' owner said they had traced their ownership back to President Tyler -- which could make them the only set presented to a U.S. president. Tyler, who was president from 1841 to 1845, received them from the U.S. mint and subsequently gave them to an employee, the custodian said.
The coins are well-known among coin dealers, so they would be difficult to sell.
"They are instantly recognizable," the custodian said.
A description of the stolen coins was included in an e-mail blitz earlier this week to dealers throughout the country, and the insurance company is offering a reward, the custodian said.
"We are extremely conscious about safety," the coins' custodian said. Coin dealers travel in groups so they are less vulnerable.
Security is a major concern at Florida's coin show, which took place at the Orange County Convention Center. The four-day show attracted 1,750 dealers.
Last year, most thieves opted for less violent means, such as breaking into cars while dealers ate in nearby restaurants. In one case, they followed a victim to Bradenton, where they stole coins by breaking the window of his car while he was in the drivers seat.
Coin-show organizers added more off-duty deputies this year to beef up security at the show. Dealers also could use an underground loading area where the public couldn't see what they were doing or what type of car they were driving. The convention also offered a 24-hour secured room where dealers could store their coins, Wibker said.
"They could pick them up on their way out of town," she added.
In recent years, more coin dealers have opted to use armored carriers to ship their valuables, said Beth Deisher, editor of Coin World magazine.
After Saturday's robbery, even more may choose that route.
"Everyone will probably be much more careful," she said. "People with inventory of this level will probably think much more about using an armored carrier rather than trying to transport this much material themselves."
The heist was one of the largest in recent years, a security expert said Tuesday as details of the crime emerged.
The rarest of the stolen booty was a set of 1843 U.S. coins with a history that traces back to President John Tyler. The proof set contains 10 coins from a half penny to a $10 gold piece. Lloyds of London had insured them for $2 million, the coins' custodian said.
The stickup was the latest strike during the Florida United Numismatists' annual coin show and convention, which is one of the largest in the country.
Last year, about $450,000 worth of coins was nabbed by thieves who trailed their victims in at least five different cases up to 100 miles to take their loot.
Convention organizers have since added more security.
"In the last year -- for whatever reason -- it has become more commonplace," numismatists convention coordinator Cindy Wibker said.
"Nobody would have thought they would have been so brazen," said Robert Brueggeman, executive director of the Professional Numismatists Guild and owner of Positive Protection, which coordinated security at the convention.
The owner of the company in custody of the coins during the robbery asked not to be identified because of fear for his and his employees' safety.
The most recent attack took place Saturday in the valet parking line at the Peabody Hotel, while an employee of the Minnesota dealer in charge of the coins unloaded them from the rear of a Nissan Xterra.
A robber wearing a surgical mask and a hooded sweater grabbed the employee from behind, held a double-edged knife to his throat and forced him to the ground, a sheriff's report states.
The hooded man kept witnesses at bay with his knife while two other men, also in surgical masks, helped grab a Samsonite suitcase containing the $2 million set as well as other coins and items from the SUV.
The attackers sped off in a brown Mitsubishi sedan, the report states.
Detectives say it's unclear whether Saturday's heist is linked to last year's thefts, which occurred during the same convention. It's also too early to say whether the robbers are part of an organized ring or the theft was a one-time hit, they said.
The robbery rattled the Minnesota man who was taking care of the coins for their owner. The $2 million coin set was part of only two remaining complete sets of the 1843 coins, which were specially designed for collectors, the custodian said.
When the coins were made, they were polished to a mirror finish and set inside a Moroccan leather case lined with velvet, the custodian said. Coin collecting was rare in those days, so few of these sets were made.
These coins recently become more valuable because the custodian and the coins' owner said they had traced their ownership back to President Tyler -- which could make them the only set presented to a U.S. president. Tyler, who was president from 1841 to 1845, received them from the U.S. mint and subsequently gave them to an employee, the custodian said.
The coins are well-known among coin dealers, so they would be difficult to sell.
"They are instantly recognizable," the custodian said.
A description of the stolen coins was included in an e-mail blitz earlier this week to dealers throughout the country, and the insurance company is offering a reward, the custodian said.
"We are extremely conscious about safety," the coins' custodian said. Coin dealers travel in groups so they are less vulnerable.
Security is a major concern at Florida's coin show, which took place at the Orange County Convention Center. The four-day show attracted 1,750 dealers.
Last year, most thieves opted for less violent means, such as breaking into cars while dealers ate in nearby restaurants. In one case, they followed a victim to Bradenton, where they stole coins by breaking the window of his car while he was in the drivers seat.
Coin-show organizers added more off-duty deputies this year to beef up security at the show. Dealers also could use an underground loading area where the public couldn't see what they were doing or what type of car they were driving. The convention also offered a 24-hour secured room where dealers could store their coins, Wibker said.
"They could pick them up on their way out of town," she added.
In recent years, more coin dealers have opted to use armored carriers to ship their valuables, said Beth Deisher, editor of Coin World magazine.
After Saturday's robbery, even more may choose that route.
"Everyone will probably be much more careful," she said. "People with inventory of this level will probably think much more about using an armored carrier rather than trying to transport this much material themselves."
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Comments
What if this was a case of a couple of bad guys that watched Chris packing on the bourse floor and simply followed the vehicle waiting for thier chance to strike? I know that everyone seems to believe that they were highly organized "jewel thief" types but isn't it possible that had Chris stopped for a burger, the thieves could have hit him in the parking lot at McDonalds? Why did they use a knife and not a handgun?
I know it really doesn't matter in the end the coins are probably lost forever and the emotional damage is impossible to measure. I just feel terrible for Chris and company!
<< <i>Wouldn't it have been better for the press to state "the thieves made off with an undisclosed amount of rare coins"? Just on the off chance that these guys were not sophisticated/ high tech/ highly organized thieves, hired to "hit" the 1843 proof set for some rich underworld collector type, why tell them that what they stole is practically unique and highly recognizable? Doesn't this information reduce the chances of recovering the coins and making an arrest?
What if this was a case of a couple of bad guys that watched Chris packing on the bourse floor and simply followed the vehicle waiting for thier chance to strike? I know that everyone seems to believe that they were highly organized "jewel thief" types but isn't it possible that had Chris stopped for a burger, the thieves could have hit him in the parking lot at McDonalds? Why did they use a knife and not a handgun?
I know it really doesn't matter in the end the coins are probably lost forever and the emotional damage is impossible to measure. I just feel terrible for Chris and company!
Anything is possible but I have a feeling this was highly organized as the car that came up behind them did not trail them from the
convention center but seemed to have been parked close to the hotel waiting for them. They must have known that the dealers were
checked into the hotel beforehand. Using a knife makes it a much quieter operation since if things turned ugly and shots were fired
that would draw more attention to what was going on.
They just turned the thieves into long-term coin collectors for a certain part of the haul!!
Regardless of how the crime went down, I think it was a bad decision to release the coin details to the general public just on the off chance that the crooks didn't know what they had.
Just my two cents.
<< <i>The press does all they can to help our enemies so it should be no surprise they would do what they can to help the local crooks. >>
yep. What WERE the founding fathers thinking? "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." If it wasn't for those damn liberal thinkers in the 18th century, we'd still have the divine right of kings to do whatever they chose-and we wouldn't have to think so darn much.
Perhaps they are following the wishes of those who owned the coins (of course I can't speak for them - I know some here are in contact with them). But it seems they want as many people as possible to know exactly what coins were stolen. After all, the firm who had the coins stolen has gone to great lengths to make sure the list is fully accurate, and at the same time to make sure it gets out to the public - at leats the significant parts of it. It seems that everyone who is registered at Heritage (a good amount of people) received an excel file listing the coins in detail (although PCGS/NGC numbers would help). I think the reasoning is that even if the thugs who stole the coins didn't know what they were taking at the time they would have found out soon enough anyway.
IMO, the thing to really be concerned about is making sure those coins stay in the country. If the theft is in some way tied into some criminal ring in Russia or Romania or the Far East, it becomes a whole new problem getting the relevant overseas authorities to cooperate. Of course we are not talking about $1 billion. But the sum is large enough to warrant the feds taking extra precaution, for example at airports, if someone has a case of coins with him they should be checked, etc.