Since then, there have been numerous articles, books, documentaries and even a movie about this gang -- the gang that couldnt shoot straight. Each cart, holding about $2 million, was taking David seven or eight minutes to stack, push, and empty into the van, and there were about eight cartloads' worth in the vault. Michelle Chambers paid off only $27,000. Campbell left her job in the summer of 1997, but she would later use Ghantt's feelings for her to her own advantage to get him to agree to carry out the multi-million-dollar heist. Getting that off his chest calmed him some, and the conversation returned to the plan. remove comments that contain spam, advertising, vulgarity, threats Sunny. When they hung up, she called his pager and left the code 1-4-3, beeper-speak for "I love you," based on the number of letters in each word. Kelly Campbell, 29, a former company employee, entered guilty pleas earlier to bank larceny, money laundering and conspiracy to commit murder charges. The $17 million was stolen last Oct. 4 from the armored-car company's vault in Charlotte. Michelle Chambers paid off only $27,000. The FBI began to question past and current employees of Loomis Fargo. Aprs de nombreux seconds rles comiques au cinma, elle parvient percer en co-crivant et tenant le rle principal de la And they hit the jackpot -- FBI video shows agents recovering most of the stolen cash. One day, the two employees were in the break room and got to talking about the news of the day a massive bank heist that just occurred in Florida by someone at their company. The same applies to trolling, the use of multiple aliases, or "Don't back out on us. "I was unhappy with my life. Now and again I run into blog posts that tends to make me want to get started on bloggin myself. Turns out, most of the thieves and their accomplices have been about as effective coming up with their court-ordered restitution as they were hiding their original crimes. The money weighed as much as a compact car and he did it all by himself. What purpose does that serve other than to denigrate that person into abject poverty?. Loomis Fargo defendants owe as much as they stole in 1997, Incident raises concerns about LGBTQ safety in Carteret County, Drug deal gone bad claims the life of former Marine, Man charged with DWI after SUV takes out gas pumps, fire hydrant in Morehead City, Norfolk Southern train derails in Lexington No hazmat, no anger, Beaufort Housing Authority to replace public housing apartments, New Gamer's Guildhall looks to build community, comradery, DA: 'A very dangerous individual' from Swansboro has been removed, EDITORIAL: Government derails in response to disasters, EDITORIAL: Traffic growth demands a third bridge addition, Commentary: Close look at family history disturbing, Commentary: Second Amendment subverts democracy, EDITORIAL: Attorney General Stein ignores his constitutional responsibility. In Gastonia, David would run into high-school classmates who had never struck him as especially smart. "Are you serious?" Butcher says the federal courts in the Western District of North Carolina have never handled a case quite like Loomis. Afterward, everything became comical. The corporation handled armored transportation, ATM maintenance and other cash handling services, and had millions of currency stashed in the vault of the North Carolina branch. Discover the truth behind unexplained ancient mysteries, UFO mysteries, secret locations and paranormal events. Thomas Grant, who served three years in prison for bank larceny, paid off restitution of $70,000; brother Eric Grant paid all of his $26,000; as did David Craig, $40,000; and Dennis and Sandra Floyd; $27,000. He and co-worker Kelly Campbell, 27, had developed a close relationship and were spending time together outside of work. Ghantt was working as a vault supervisor for Loomis Fargo in Charlotte in 1997, earning about $8 an hour and tired of his humdrum life. Ghantt had struck up a relationship with a fellow Loomis Fargo employee, Kelly Campbell; they continued to maintain contact even after Campbell left the company. More than 2 million dollars are still missing to this day. Jim Gronquist, Campbells defense attorney during the Loomis case, says the financial penalties levied against his client and her co-defendants are grossly excessive and unjust, particularly since most of the stolen Loomis money was actually recovered. So we were able to figure out with all the denominations, it would require about 20 safe deposit boxes to store it all.. They had to be extremely careful not to tip off the group, as they could lose potential conspirators or more information important to a conviction. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. It took me going to prison to realize I was a bag of worms, and it took me years of work to be somebody worthy to come back into our society, he said. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. What that says is, We will never forgive you for what youve done. Eric Payne got out of prison in 2006 for his role in the heist and has since paid $11,357 on his $292,000 debt. Tuesday marked 25 years since a group of buddies pulled off the third-largest money grab in U.S. history -- the Loomis Fargo heist. According to Butcher, Campbells last official payment came in June 2021 when the government appears to have seized a tax refund of $81.24. Ghantt was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. "But you can still have a cigarette.". You cannot fine low-income people millions of dollars. Some of the biggest numbers remaining on the Loomis collection board, as is the case with Campbell, belong to those who played the biggest role in the crime: - David Ghantt, the Loomis employee who loaded all that money 2,800 pounds in all into the back of a company van before escaping to Mexico, has paid just under $50,000 of the $3.81 million he was assessed. But that only tells part of the story. He shut the empty vault and set its timer so the vault could not be opened for two or three days. White-collar criminals are pretty good at hiding their money, she said. David got a kick out of her. So we were able to figure out with all the denominations, it would require about 20 safe deposit boxes to store it all., WSOC TV facebook feed(Opens a new window), Part 2: Channel 9 speaks with the man at the center of Loomis Fargo heist 25 years ago, ALSO READ: 14-year-old boy robbed at gunpoint while waiting for bus in east Charlotte, mom says, ALSO READ: Leader of $3M check theft, bank fraud scheme in Charlotte area sentenced to prison, ALSO READ: Man released from jail, accused of robbing banks while wearing electronic monitor, police say, ALSO READ: Suspect from south Charlotte bank robbery found, CMPD says, NCSHP arrest driver accused of nearly hitting 2 students at bus stop in Statesville, CMS delays opening of new school meant to ease overcrowding, Mooresville orders removal of memorial at park after teens death, Chick-fil-A announces app data breach, tells customers how to protect personal information, Charlotte woman celebrates $1 million scratch-off prize, WSOC - TV Public File Contact / Program Director, WAXN - TV Public File Contact / Program Director. Thank you so much. Once they were in custody, the overwhelming task of clearing out possessions possibly purchased with the stolen money began. ", Johnson said, "Yeah, that's it. Steve's a serious guy.". : The .17 Million Loomis Fargo Theft . Investigators also found Ghantts pickup truck, abandoned at the warehouse. It wasn't how much you stole that mattered most; it was that you had stolen in the first place. Still facing possible unknowns of other people involved, the FBI needed to gather more information without the suspects getting suspicious of them. The phone calls began to get more intense when Steve and Eric got suspicious of a man who was running hismouth about them and the vault job over in Charlotte. So the pieces were falling into place for investigators. Theres no way to get it back, Butcher told The Charlotte Observer. You have permission to edit this article. Current price is $11.49, Original price is $14.99. If the American Dream involved being better off as adults than your parents were, David was experiencing a version of the American Nightmare. Campbell used to work for Loomis and continued the friendship with Ghantt, eventually hooking him up with Chambers. Agents raided safe deposit boxes, where they recovered more than $11 million. There are multiples of thousands of these things coming every year. Not all of them, but some of them are going to forgive you, theyre going to overlook it., he said. He deserved better. What that says is, We will never forgive you for what youve done.'. 2023 Cox Media Group. The reason David didn't know Steve's last name was so they couldn't identify each other to the police or FBI, should cops or G-men ever enter the picture. The plan to. Available on Compatible NOOK Devices and the free NOOK Apps. A parrot tattoo on her right ankle. Working by himself, Ghantt would commit the robbery and then flee for Mexico, leaving the bulk of the cash with Chambers. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. None of the suspects had been in any serious trouble before this. Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers, carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4, 1997. It's still the hot topic . But after one visit, she asked a teller How much can I deposit before you have to report it to the feds? followed by Dont worry, it is notdrug money, the bank filled out asuspicious activity report, which ultimately reached the FBI. A third surveillance tape was carelessly left behind, and the company was able to identify the man who robbed the vault as David Ghantt. He wanted to leave his wife for her, and Kelly, who also was married, let him think she wanted the same. "I don't have time to mess with you. Many of the lesser players in the conspiracy have been the most effective in paying their debts. Spunk. Moving the money into the van quickly proved an onerous task. The movie was called Masterminds and stars Zach Galifianakis, Kristen Wiig and Owen Wilson. David told Kelly they would have to control themselves and not spend the money too quickly, because the FBI could electronically trace a suspect's recent spending activity through bank papers, credit card records, and land transactions. Its in the ether. In David's eyes, Johnson's big mistake was that he did it alone. David Ghantt (Zach Galifianakis), an employee of Loomis Fargo, robbed his own vault, left the $17.3 million in cash with his co-conspirators, Kelly Campbell (Kristen Wiig) and Steve Chambers (Owen Wilson) and fled the country to Mexico. Former Loomis employee David Scott Ghantt is accused of stealing the money. After hanging up on her, David returned to work. The October 4 shift was lasting longer than expected, due to delays involving pickups and deliveries. It, too, has changed hands several times. There are many robberies registered in the history of America, but the Loomis Fargo Robbery is known to be the second largest robbery in the United States. And with Loomis, were looking at only one case. Uh-oh, it looks like your Internet Explorer is out of date. Only a nickel on every dollar have been collected so far. Who was she to be pressuring him? Its said the current owner now has it in storage in Phoenix, Arizona. A couple by the names of Steve and Shelley Chambers also became people of interest in the investigation due to their extreme sudden increase in spending. CHARLOTTE (AP) During one overnight shift, a bumbling conspiracy of thieves just west of Charlotte stole more than $17 million from Loomis Fargo. They could talk about anything, even topics he couldn't discuss with his wife. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Of course the problem was, the money belonged to someone else. It was released in 2016 and Wydra was invited to the premiere. The trainee didn't know to check to make sure it was closed. The building was configured so vans could drive inside and pull up next to the vault. Though much of the cash was already stacked on pushcarts in the vault, other stacks were on shelves or the floor, and they were heavy. In order to receive more evidence, the FBI decided to listen. Meanwhile, Ghantt's gang spent wildly and paid their family members and friends to hide money. Driving away, he said he felt a mix of fear, confidence and excitement that he outsmarted the FBI. From there, the money was moved from the armored car to private vehicles. They had met in December 1995 on one of her first days at Loomis. So the original gang was all totally shocked, Wydra said. Why do we feel its so necessary to treat people like this, to say, OK, well just ruin the rest of your life because you made a bad decision., Punishment should not last a lifetime. By using this website, you accept the terms of our Visitor Agreement and Privacy Policy, and understand your options regarding Ad Choices. Inside $3.3 million was located along with the two stolen surveillance tapes, apparently left due to the robber and his accomplices being sloppy, or in a hurry. The unfairness gnawed at him, stirred by Kelly's questions. Why do we feel its so necessary to treat people like this, to say, OK, well just ruin the rest of your life because you made a bad decision., Punishment should not last a lifetime. So they went to Mexico and arrested Ghantt in order to protect him. They located Steve and Shelley Chambers in their newly-purchased home at the top of a hill. He realized his bosses would know he had worked that day and that he was missing, but maybe without a video they would think he'd been held at gunpoint and taken hostage, or even better, that he'd been killed. We dont have the manpower to track all that (restitution) money down I pay (restitution to) thousands of people, but its in drips and drabs.. He hired a hitman to take Ghantt out, tying up the ultimate loose end. The Star-Ledger, 06/15/2015On October 4, 1997, an amateurish gang robbed Loomis, Fargo & Co. in Charlotte, NC of $17 million, the second largest heist in U.S. history. '. Then they returned it. Ghantt went to Mexico leaving the money with his cohorts, thinking that he could get his share back when he needed it. them. But he wasn't finished. Johnson had stolen $18.8 million earlier in the year, on March 19, 1997, only to be caught five months later, in late August, while crossing into Texas from Mexico to retrieve some of the money, which he'd hidden in a shed in mountainous western North Carolina. This website uses cookies and some data tracking to improve your experience and serve adverts, We assume you're ok with this, you can opt-out if you wish. Ghantt had worked with the branch since 1994, and had been promoted from a driver to the vault supervisor. Despite being caught on camera wheeling the money from the vault to the getaway van, David Ghantt makes off to Mexico before the FBI can blink. Twenty years ago this Wednesday, a small group of people stole $17 million in cash from the main vault of a Loomis Fargo & Co. armored-car warehouse in west Charlotte. But things didnt quite work out that way. Records show the government has garnished his Social Security checks. Unexplained Mysteries - owned by Aliens since 2011. And then I realized that a lot of people knew who I was and they had followed the case.. These (Loomis) guys, not so much.. On the evening ofOctober 4, 1997, the Loomis Fargo & Co branch in Charlotte, North Carolina was in the process of being plundered. be blocked or permanently banned without warning. The supervisor liked him and gave him the job. You cannot fine low-income people millions of dollars. They succeeded in removing $17 million from the safe. All of the defendants are out of prison -- the longest sentence was 11 years. Loomis Fargo, the nation's largest privately held armored- car company, used vans to transport hundreds of millions of dollars a day belonging to banks and other businesses, stocking automated teller machines and storing money in the Loomis vault between deliveries. Library Journal "highly entertaining." An additional tip reached the FBI when Michelle Chambers made a large deposit at a bank. You can seize property. FILE - Kelly Campbell, one of the 21 people convicted for their involvement in the $17 million Loomis Fargo heist, awaits sentencing for her part in the theft at her mobile home near Mount Holly . Learn how to enable JavaScript on your browser. It has a certain feel, a smell and weight to it. true story that has captivated American audiences on the news and now on the big screen in the major motion picture, Masterminds. Hed never really been in trouble, he wasnt a career criminal, said retired FBI agent John Wydra. He was a hard worker, smart enough, and had graduated from high school. The FBI became more suspicious after they interviewed Campbell for the third time. FILE - Kelly Campbell, one of the 21 people convicted for their involvement in the $17 million Loomis Fargo heist, awaits sentencing for her part in the theft at her mobile home near Mount Holly, N.C. on Aug 16, 1999. On Oct. 5, the Loomis heist celebrates its 25th birthday. More than half of the amount came from the seizure of a luxury home purchased by husband-and-wife defendants during their post-heist spending spree. The 2016 comedy movie, Masterminds is based on the story of the Loomis Fargo Heist. Kelly called, using David's own cell phone, to ask where he was already, because she and the others were waiting outside for him. Steve and Michelle Chambers, who had lived in a mobile home, bought a mansion in Cramer Mountain. She will never get beyond the debt. CHARLOTTE If you didnt live in the Charlotte area 25 years ago, you might not believe it. Husband and wife Steven and Michelle Chambers, whose conspicuous consumption of a luxury home, a BMW convertible, breast implants and a $600 wooden Indian, among other purchases, helped the FBI solve the crime, were assessed $3.81 million and $4.8 million, respectively. And if that gives people out there a little bit of hope, then Ive served my purpose on this earth.. The unsolved mystery of the Van Meter Visitor a winged creature! Ghantt was the vault manager and was surrounded. https://www.charlotteagenda.com/67457/loomis-fargo-heist-masterminds-movie/, http://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/state/article104506876.html, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_1997_Loomis_Fargo_robbery#Company, http://retroclt.blogspot.com/2014/07/loomis-fargo-heist.html, . Youre supposed to get less time for cooperating, a lesser penalty, and instead, you see what she got hit with. Gronquist said. The biggest restitution numbers for victims of financial crimes generally involve Ponzi schemes or sweepstakes fraud, not cash thefts. While Ghantt waited for the heat from the robbery to die down, Chambers would send Ghantt small amounts of money. Asked the purpose of his visit, Johnson had replied, "To visit friends. He tried again to make the back gate rise, to no avail. About six months before the Charlotte theft, on March 29, a total of $18.8 million was taken from Loomis, Fargo in Jacksonville, Fla., in what was believed to be the largest heist in U.S.. When I put that cash in the back of the car, by the time I got to the office the whole car smelled like that. In 2017, for example, Paul Burks of Lexington was ordered to pay $244 million to the victims of his worldwide Ponzi scheme, Zeek Rewards. "Everything's gonna be all right," she told him. The Loomis defendants face no additional legal jeopardy for not paying off their debts. As it neared its end, David stealthily left the vault door ajar. personal/abusive/condescending attacks on other users or goading NASCAR. The plan was to exit through the building's electronic back gate, which consisted of horizontal metal plates that opened at the touch of a button. In addition, he also rented Mike his own apartment, paid him $400/weekly and bought him a gun. In one case, the restitution for a Loomis defendant may be a moving target. In his youth, his mother had taken him to Sears and JCPenney, but as a man he shopped at Walmart, and while he knew there was nothing wrong with that, he wished he could afford more. But after a year, they cut it down to two agents. In the grand scheme of things, the prison sentence for stealing $20 million wouldn't be much worse than for stealing just $500,000 maybe a few extra years behind bars. Updated: 11:31 AM EDT October 4, 2022 CHARLOTTE, N.C. Tuesday is the 25th anniversary of the infamous Loomis Fargo heist in Charlotte, where a bank worker, with the help of two accomplices,. All but one took plea deals, including Ghantt, who was sentenced to seven years in prison. These cookies do not store any personal information. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. David's share would be sent to Mexico, where he planned to hide and where he expected Kelly to join him. I pay (restitution to) thousands of people, but its in drips and drabs.. He hired a hitman to take Ghantt out, tying up the ultimate loose end. I actually loved reading through this post. It just happened to fall on my desk.. Steve began talking about wiring money to overseas accounts, and even purchasing a nightclub. To visit friends.". Steve had hired a bodyguard named Mike McKinney. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. The van used to move the money was later located a few miles from the warehouse. FILE - Kelly Campbell, one of the 21 people convicted for their involvement in the $17 million Loomis Fargo heist, awaits sentencing for her part in the theft at her mobile home near. He knew they were nervous outside waiting for him, but he also knew he wouldn't stop stealing until he had taken everything. The $17 million Loomis Fargo heist in Charlotte, North Carolina, was the second largest armored car robbery in U.S. history. So he and some friends decided at the end of his Oct. 4 shift he would load a company van with more than 2,000 pounds of cash and just drive away. Ghantt had fled to Mexico with $50,000 in cash, leaving the rest of the money with Steve Chambers. The FBI was inadvertently aided by the gang members extravagant spending. He added that money can be a motivator for anyone. The Loomis case is another example where the amount of restitution ordered vs. what is actually paid are two dramatically different numbers. At about 6:40 p.m., he went back inside.
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