Kelly called David at Loomis; he told her he'd be ready for them with the cash at 6:30 or 7 p.m. Alone in the building, David was trying to finish loading cash from the vault into an unmarked white Ford Econoline van belonging to Loomis. I loved it. Purchases included a pool table, jewelry (including a $43,000 diamond ring), a minivan, $20,000 worth of cigars, and the 7,000-square-foot home on the side of Cramer Mountain. And when everybody else voted to kill me, she voted with them, he explains. He hadnt checked ahead of time if the airport had any available flights, let alone if it would even be open. Cool, I say. What concerned her was the chance of getting caught. He was also a former FBI informant who had tipped the bureau off to a planned robbery of a Loomis Fargo armored truck that never came to fruition. It was unclear whether anyone will get that money, authorities said. Ghantt didn't actually meet Chambers until the night of the heist, though, according to Diamant, who would go on to write a book about it.The . 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of the year that everything happened 1997. . At the Halloween party, though, Kelly gave in to Steve, and agreed it had to be done. October was "a blast," he said. I knew I was going to be the prime suspect. It wasn't known whether anyone would receive it. Basic and voluntary life insurance plan. But the idea of all that money pulled at her. Kelly said she had reason to believe Steve might be able to pull off a heist. Kelly, using David's cell phone, kept beeping him. Inside were, along with other personal items, his keys and wedding ring. That October, the Chamberses' bank accounts ballooned. She was devastated, Diamant said. Loomis Armored Shreveport, LA, 1124 Forum Dr, Shreveport, LA, USA Shreveport, LA, USA Req #1990. . She was a wife and mother with two children. It was an ear-biting, Pierce Brosnan-loving, comet-obsessed world, and were here to relive every minute of it. More agents waited outside to arrest them. I had to go in there and tell her the whole story, and she was real cool about it. Everybody seemed stunned. You're an idiot.'". Ghantt pulled out $50,000 from the back of the unmarked Loomis Fargo van. For his part, Ghantt was now officially on his way to Mexico, his future stretched out before him. "She said, 'What would it take to convince you to do it?' In real life: False. Not many people can say they stole $17 million from their employer and had Zach Galifianakis play them in a movie. So I guess I have no regrets. Ghantt:It's a comedy. Steve and Michele invited everyone back for a Christmas party, where they gave Michele's stepfather a special gift--the pickup truck he'd always wanted. Everything came crashing down on an early March morning in 1998. The robbery was committed by Loomis vault supervisor David Scott Ghantt, his married girlfriend Kelly Campbell (a former Loomis co-worker), Steven Eugene Chambers (a one-time FBI informant), his wife Michelle Chambers, Michael Gobbies, and four other co-conspirators. But first they wanted to know if it was a robbery or a robbery-homicide. Steve Chambers and Kelly Campbell, who had been friends on and off since growing up together in the mid-1980s, were at a cookout, playing cards and drinking Budweiser at Steve's Lincoln County, N.C., mobile home, Kelly recalled. Inside the Mazda, Steve told Scott Grant to get out and help David. By then Id figured out that Bruno was up to no good, and that Id probably never seen any more of my money. He covers culture, politics, race, and other perplexing mysteries for MEL. David was living under the name Mike McKinney on a phony ID. Speaking of his co-defendants, Ghantt says hes not currently in contact with any of them. The plan called for David to leave the vault door ajar, then maneuver a few minutes alone at the end of his shift, long enough to loot the cash, then pass it to Kelly and Steve. Now worried about both the FBI and McKinney, he spent even more time alone in his room. It's one of the biggest jokes at the place. When Chambers and the two Erics were done loading the stolen millions into barrels, they abandoned the van in the woods. They also purchased tanning beds, a pool table, a Harley-Davidson Road King motorcycle and all kinds of expensive furniture. Next month, Payne will back in the Charlotte federal courthouse, this time to be sentenced from weapons and methamphetamine trafficking charges. Down in Jacksonville, a Loomis Fargo employee took $18 million from an armored van he was driving. They also left behind a life-changing fortune in small bills $3.3 million in fives and ones that they overlooked and the two videotapes that Ghantt had pulled from the security cameras at the bank. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. That sounds like a lot of money until its compared to the $18,930,201.26 the group was ordered to pay. Ghantt would go on to spend six and a half years in federal prison. I said, It comes down to picking the right day, and the right time of the month, and all that good stuff. I even told her, It wouldnt be all that difficult. In real life: True. I've got a good woman.". Kelly called David at. For her part, Kelly Campbell spent six years in federal prison. And then I could hear her laughing. Kelly was no criminal. That was the most painful truth to come to. Charlotte hotel chef who serves with a smile recognized as outstanding ambassador, Eritrean, Ethiopian restaurant owner was a big brother and father to many in Charlotte, Home tours: This wired-up Weddington smart home has a pool big enough for the neighborhood. 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. Working together, they got the gate open, then drove in a caravan to the Reynolds & Reynolds parking lot. Then another. They cursed. There are multiples of thousands of these things coming every year. Why fans love it. Despite a mega-watt cast featuring Zach Galifianakis and a handful of some of Saturday Night Lives biggest current and former stars, Masterminds, the comedy about Loomis Fargo robbery completely tanked at the box office in its opening weekend, bowing in sixth place with just $6.6 million. By . Not a documentary. A couple weeks pass, and I call again, Hey, Id like to get some more money. I was expecting her to kick me out of the house., Years later, after they married and had a child together, they watched a movie based on the whole ordeal. And robbing a truck was dangerous. I can take it.". Loomis officials--forced to break into their own vault because David had taken the keys with him--calculated that he had stolen $17,044,000, making the second biggest heist in U.S. history, following the $18.8 million theft of an armored car by another Loomis Fargo employee just six months earlier. The teller, who hadn't asked, filed a "suspicious activity report." Was Queen Charlotte Black? Two days after theyd robbed the Loomis Fargo truck the very same day the police found the abandoned van in the woods Steve and Michelle Chambers walked into a bank and deposited their cut of the stolen money into their account. Tags: Associated Press, courts, crime, North Carolina. Ghantt:I hate to say it, but I had six years of sitting in a box to think about my life. They loaded the wine cellar with Pabst Blue Ribbon, and Steve hung a velvet portrait of Elvis Presley in the basement. It will be some time before she can commune with domestic animals again. Soon, the couple would be paying for something else, too: a hitman. "But, I hate to admit it, it doesn't faze me one bit. Scott didn't want to, but then he remembered the hundred-grand payday. Here's what Floyd recalls: After two games of pool, Steve told him, "You know, we do a lot of gambling. Ghantt:Since I still owe the federal government money I can't get paid. His assignment was to deliver the cash to David and keep him happy until they could find a way to kill him, McKinney said. Jeffrey Guller, who at 81 is by far the oldest of the Loomis defendants, still owes almost $1.1 million on his original court debt of $1.14 million and will remain on the governments books for another four years. Almost 19 years after Ghantt and a group of friends from Gaston County pulled off one of the largest cash heists in U.S. history, the movie "Masterminds" will play up the caper for laughs. Then, I started loading the van., Money, when bound in bulk and stacked in canvas bags, is heavier than you might expect. Careers. And I knew that by that time, Id be in Cancun no matter what. They put up mauve wallpaper. Burks was also ordered to serve 15 years in prison, limiting his ability to balance his books. So yeah, Ghantt continues, I took a bus from there to Atlanta, and then I hopped a cab from the bus station to the airport in Atlanta., Back in North Carolina, his accomplices were working as fast as they could to hide the $17 million. But McKinney never stopped trying to kill Ghantt although, initally, McKinney thought Chambers had paid for the hit over a drug deal gone bad, Diamant said. At 6 that morning, FBI supervisor Rick Shaffer led 12 agents and several Gaston County police officers up a winding road on Cramer Mountain to Steve's home. 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. real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist. There had been no signs. When she realized Ghantt never came home from work the night before, she contacted the police and filed a missing persons report. The next day, Kelly drove back to Steve's mobile home to watch the news with Steve and Michele. These days, the 52-year-old husband and father lives in Jacksonville, Florida, where he works at a heavy equipment rental agency. Throughout the multi-year-long case and subsequent trials, journalists often referred to Ghantt and the others as trailer trash and hillbillies. Get to me. Its that kind of excitement.. But as soon as he drove off, I went right back in and opened the vault. By the time the month concluded, the couple had purchased a 7,000-square-foot stone mansion in a gated country club community. He didn't want to abandon his parents. And with Loomis, were looking at only one case. Butcher says the federal courts in the Western District of North Carolina have never handled a case quite like Loomis. . The name she gave the pup is apropos. When neighbors asked where they got their money, Steve said hed played in the NFL. On Oct. 5, the Loomis heist celebrates its 25th birthday. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) During one overnight shift, a bumbling conspiracy of thieves just west of Charlotte stole more than $17 million from Loomis Fargo. He hated the sweet smell of the green ink, and the $8.15-an-hour salary. I learned something that was valuable at the time: Most criminals never leave a 250, maybe 300-mile circle from their home base. At first, I just blended in with the tourists and picked up a few translation books, Ghantt explains. In real life: False. "A lot of people out there had it worse than me, but . His new life in Mexico had begun. See all of the stories here. . I flew from Atlanta to New Orleans. They didn't know it, but they were leaving $3.3 million behind. His mobile home was nicely furnished, on eight acres with a stream in the back. He grabbed the tapes from two VCRs that connected to 16 security cameras. And I think that makes it all the more funny, because it really offends my co-defendants. They were the butt of a national joke. Ghantt:I don't think he ever really meant to harm me. David, now 30, says he's sorry he abandoned his wife--who he says still loves him--and his family. Michelle Chambers received seven years and eight months, while Steve Chambers was handed an 11-year sentence. All rights reserved. Paying the money back has taken a lot longer, and time is running out for the U.S. government to collect. If you were one of the much-smaller-than-expected group of people who caught Masterminds at the theater this weekend, and are looking for a fact-check of the events depicted on screen, here are some of the highlights of our chat with Diamant. Health savings account and flexible spending account. I just want people to go to the movies and have a good laugh, even if it's at my expense. Ghantt:I've burned that bridge years ago. >> PHOTOS: The Loomis Fargo heist, 25 years later Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers, carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4,. His name was Corey. Keep supporting great journalism by turning off your ad blocker. He gave the rest to Kelly. She tried to apologize for the murder plot. The agents tapped the phone, and it didnt take long to locate Ghantt after that. She will never get beyond the debt. One thing about teammates, in David's view: You could always trust them. Best States is an interactive platform developed by U.S. News for ranking the 50 U.S. states, alongside news analysis and daily reporting. Question: You were a consultant? The mystery 1-4-3 caller had been Kelly, though agents didn't know it yet. Instead of lobster, the man who stole $17 million survived on home-cooked pasta and grilled cheese sandwiches. Getting restitution, its like pulling teeth.. Twenty people were convicted of roles big and small in the massive 1997 armored-car warehouse heist in west Charlotte. I mean, cause greed is a funny animal. Zach always plays that bumbling kind of lunatic, but hes not, Ghantt says. "I've moved on with my life," he said Tuesday. I thought, Okay, if I get out of that bubble because the cops depend on that, even the feds my chances to get away go way up.. That's the kind of movie they wanted to make. But because David's relationship with his Loomis bosses had been rocky, he says, he doesn't feel sorry about what he did to the company. Ive never taken offense to anything like that, he tells me. One night in a small North Carolina town, a down-on-his-luck guard at Loomis Fargo manages to steal $17 millionliterally more than one ton of cash. The government does not run debtors prisons, says U.S. He longed for the middle-class lifestyle of his childhood, with its private religious-school education and Disney World vacations. In the first days after the arrests, agents recovered or accounted for all but about $2 million of the stolen money. Restitution is a familiar part of sentencing in federal court. . The Unexpectedly Sweet Story Behind Those Viral Semi-Truck Pregnancy Photos. I don't want to be mean, but that's probably the dumbest thing they could do. If I hadn't done what I did the, the life I have now with my wife and child, I wouldn't have. I'd probably change jobs. When Ghantt was on the plane home from Mexico with the FBI, he admitted to the agents that while Campbell had been integral to why hed done it and that he did indeed have a crush on her it was never his true motivation. You can garnish wages. On Nov. 12, a confidential informant told the FBI about Steve Chambers's move from mobile home to mansion. I don't blame him.". In that time, I realized most of my problems were because of me. And I was thinking about just showing up there. Ghantt:It started out as a mental exercise and somewhere between the mental exercise and the actual event, it became serious. "For the first year, they're all over you. While the agents initiated their investigation, the Chambers spent money as quickly as they could. Ghantt says he operates a bulldozer for a small company. Together, they drove in a convoy to an industrial warehouse eight miles away, where Eric Payne, a fourth accomplice was. The robbery of some $17 million quickly became one of the wildest bank heists of the last quarter century. He took bus tours of Mayan ruins. ", "I wouldn't do it. I just had to call you., Today, Ghantt cant look back on the whole ordeal without some degree of pride. He told her he wanted more of "his" cash. At the end of October, Kelly was sentenced to 5 years 10 months in prison. But it wasnt. Industry leading Training and Development. Back in North Carolina, Ghantts former accomplices were living high on the hog. Explain? He para-sailed, power-skied and scuba-dived. Almost 19 years after Ghantt and a group of friends from Gaston County pulled off one of the largest cash heists in U.S. history, the movie "Masterminds" will play up the caper for laughs. Purchases included a pool table, jewelry (including a $43,000 diamond ring), a minivan, $20,000 worth of cigars, and the 7,000-square-foot home on the side of Cramer.
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