$99 million of gems in armored car stolen at an airport
article
Let me summarize. At a Netherlands airport, a group of thieves disguised as airport employees were able to steal an armored car loaded with $99 million worth of gems.
Here is the most amazing quote from the article:
Unless the workers were knocked out with some type of gas (like in the James Bond movie Goldfinger, during the Fort Knox robbery) or actually had guns pointed in their face, I don't see how they could only be distressed by the robbery.
Short recap on what has been stolen from Europe recently: the Scream painting (taken out of museum, in full site of visitors - there was little attempt to break in or sneak out, as no one tried to stop the thieves), the $25+ million bank robbery in Britain, and now the theft of an armored car at an airport. And that's just off the top of my head. I should also mention the repeated break-ins at the British Royal Family's palaces. It's not just that people break in past all the security, it's that they wait in plain sight with a batman costume and billboard for three hours until security finally notices them (yep, that actually happened). And not just once, many people have broken in; Batman, some weird woman, the "comedian" dressed as Osama bin Laden who went to the prince's birthday party, and the list goes on.
What's the worst that the US has seen? A FBI informant torching himself outside the Whitehouse was bad, but that guy was outside the Whitehouse gates; he didn't break in. Well, years ago in California, a tank was stolen and driven down the highway, with countless police cars trailing it from a distance. But that was California. On the other hand, there is actually a British guy who owns a tank and regularly drives it – I suspect he just has to stay off roads that can't accommodate heavy vehicles. And that guy bought the tank, and it's had a bit of work done so it won't fire, though that can probably be undone if the owner really wants to.
That actually reminds me of something; armored cars are probably slow, especially when going uphill, so why couldn't police or the military follow it? Aren't there tracking devices in armored cars? The US shipping industry has put GPS locators in trucks (of all types, not just armored) for years to keep track of drivers or in case the truck is stolen. I can't believe that Europe wouldn't do the same for armored vehicles.
A portion of the stolen gems are diamonds, which are marked – by a laser, I believe – and the mark cannot be removed. So, if anyone tries to sell the diamonds, the seller should be caught.
US airport security looks a lot better after this story, doesn't it?
Let me summarize. At a Netherlands airport, a group of thieves disguised as airport employees were able to steal an armored car loaded with $99 million worth of gems.
Here is the most amazing quote from the article:
Officers said that airport workers threatened in the raid were “distressed” but unharmed.
Unless the workers were knocked out with some type of gas (like in the James Bond movie Goldfinger, during the Fort Knox robbery) or actually had guns pointed in their face, I don't see how they could only be distressed by the robbery.
Short recap on what has been stolen from Europe recently: the Scream painting (taken out of museum, in full site of visitors - there was little attempt to break in or sneak out, as no one tried to stop the thieves), the $25+ million bank robbery in Britain, and now the theft of an armored car at an airport. And that's just off the top of my head. I should also mention the repeated break-ins at the British Royal Family's palaces. It's not just that people break in past all the security, it's that they wait in plain sight with a batman costume and billboard for three hours until security finally notices them (yep, that actually happened). And not just once, many people have broken in; Batman, some weird woman, the "comedian" dressed as Osama bin Laden who went to the prince's birthday party, and the list goes on.
What's the worst that the US has seen? A FBI informant torching himself outside the Whitehouse was bad, but that guy was outside the Whitehouse gates; he didn't break in. Well, years ago in California, a tank was stolen and driven down the highway, with countless police cars trailing it from a distance. But that was California. On the other hand, there is actually a British guy who owns a tank and regularly drives it – I suspect he just has to stay off roads that can't accommodate heavy vehicles. And that guy bought the tank, and it's had a bit of work done so it won't fire, though that can probably be undone if the owner really wants to.
That actually reminds me of something; armored cars are probably slow, especially when going uphill, so why couldn't police or the military follow it? Aren't there tracking devices in armored cars? The US shipping industry has put GPS locators in trucks (of all types, not just armored) for years to keep track of drivers or in case the truck is stolen. I can't believe that Europe wouldn't do the same for armored vehicles.
A portion of the stolen gems are diamonds, which are marked – by a laser, I believe – and the mark cannot be removed. So, if anyone tries to sell the diamonds, the seller should be caught.
US airport security looks a lot better after this story, doesn't it?
posted by Chris at
4:22 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home