Its like, me and you sat down, I have access to pie, you like pie, all I want is my share of the pie. There are multiples of thousands of these things coming every year. Loomis Fargo Heist of 1997 - History and Other Things An additional tip reached the FBI when Michelle Chambers made a large deposit at a bank. Friends of Campbell had also begun spending large amounts of cash. Its said the current owner now has it in storage in Phoenix, Arizona. Over the next two weeks, David thought about it. The police almost immediately called theFBI, since 95% of the money handled at the facility was owned by banks. She had attitude. And they hit the jackpot -- FBI video shows agents recovering most of the stolen cash. Then one day, while reviewing his and Tammy's credit card bill, he did some quick math and realized that even if they met the minimum monthly payments, the bill would take thirty years to pay. The FBI began to question past and current employees of Loomis Fargo. 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 Chambers home is now gated, which means Channel 9 crews cant drive up to it like we used to. But things didnt quite work out that way. Ghantt was the vault manager and was surrounded. In fact, he had recently finished a book about the FBI and felt it provided insight into the agency's investigative techniques, insight he thought could help the little gang succeed. Campbell used to work for Loomis and continued the friendship with Ghantt, eventually hooking him up with Chambers. Winds light and variable. remove comments that contain spam, advertising, vulgarity, threats The towns booming construction industry attracts workers from around the country. He could even be famous, perhaps joining the ranks of legendary master thieves. The theft at the time the second-largest cash robbery in U.S. history has been the brunt of mocking movies and books, mostly on how the thieves, who had little money to begin with, could not control their spending habits once they did. Ghantt reported to Chambers that his supply of money was running low, but Chambers sent Ghantt just $8,000. Loomis has received $978,983.79, according to Sally Butcher, an assistant clerk in the federal courts of the Western District of North Carolina who specializes in criminal debt. Unexplained Mysteries - owned by Aliens since 2011. That way, outsiders couldn't see money being loaded. 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. A third surveillance tape was carelessly left behind, and the company was able to identify the man who robbed the vault as David Ghantt. While David Ghantt trusted Steve Chambers enough to leave his cut behind, Chambers had other plans. He said at first, they were very proud of what they had been able to do. For a better shopping experience, please upgrade now. And if that gives people out there a little bit of hope, then Ive served my purpose on this earth.. LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Remember why you were elected! They swept the surrounding counties, locating Kelly Campbell and Eric Payne in their homes. 2023 Cox Media Group. There are multiples of thousands of these things coming every year. He tried again to make the back gate rise, to no avail. He is a graduate of Yale and has worked for the Connecticut Post, the Associated Press, and the Palm Beach Post. Loomis has received $978,983.79, according to Sally Butcher, an assistant clerk in the federal courts of the Western District of North Carolina who specializes in criminal debt. 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. Its a once-in-a-lifetime thing, and I went down and talked to them, got to meet Zach Galifianakis and the director, Ghantt said. VERDICT The first edition of this work was published in 2002. Living with his wife, Tammy, in a mobile home, he had longed for the middle-class lifestyle of his childhood that had come to seem luxurious, a pipe dream for him now. Then we went on a mission to calculate exactly how much size-wise the money was, $11.3 million in $20 bills, and it weighed over 2,000 pounds, Wydra said. More than 2 million dollars are still missing to this day. That first day in prison was scary, Ghantt said. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.. Clear skies. "Everything's gonna be all right," she told him. Its in the ether. We are happy to work with other website publishers. It's been 20 years since the Loomis Fargo heist. - Charlotte Observer Was the temptation too much? The bigger the amount, however, the bigger the damages to victims that likely will never be repaid: Amy Paynes collection account was closed in 2020 with her having paid $53,000 of the $274,000 she owed. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. The real story behind the second largest bank heist in history, which His collection case closes in two years. Now, at 7:45 p.m., with all the money finally inside the van, his aching muscles could take a breather. EDITORIAL: Computer Science misses the need for digital literacy, N. Carolina legislators announce Medicaid expansion deal, EDITORIAL: Fighting political forces that sever family ties, Special-use to get overhaul: Commissioners, planners take a look, Cape Carteret seeking new police chief one month after hiring New Bern resident for post, How many in North Carolina are awaiting student loan debt relief? 2023 Cox Media Group. I appreciate your kind words! *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. >> PHOTOS: The Loomis Fargo heist, 25 years later. 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. A more immediate need was securing help to move the stolen money to safety the night of the crime. Although the FBI investigation was able to quickly connect Ghantt to Campbell, connecting Ghantt to Chambers was a more difficult task. For people earning $8.15 an hour David's salary the jokes came naturally. Jeff Diamant was a reporter for the Charlotte Observer when the heist took place. FBI video shows the agency searching that home and finding drawers full of cash. America's Dumbest Heist! (True Crime Documentary) | Real Stories Records show the government has garnished his Social Security checks. How Did David Ghantt, Kelly Campbell, Steve Chambers Steal More Than Campbell was another employee at Loomis Fargo and she and Ghantt quickly struck up a relationship, one that Campbell denies was ever romantic though FBI evidence says otherwise, and one that continued after she left the company. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. David and Kelly had driven to Rock Hill, South Carolina, and used the documents to obtain a fake ID that David would also rely on after the theft. 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. Thank you so much. He couldn't understand the gap, why he wasn't more successful, why he couldn't at least match the financial stability of his father, who earned a comfortable salary driving a truck. The case resurfaced in the federal courts on Thursday, Sept. 1, when the U.S. Attorneys Office in Charlotte posted a public reminder in the case file of Loomis defendant Kelly Campbell that she had fallen behind in her restitution. Moving the money into the van quickly proved an onerous task. After marrying Tammy in 1992, he worked fueling airplanes at the airport in Hilton Head, South Carolina. >> PHOTOS: The Loomis Fargo heist, 25 years later. He angrily hung up the phone at Loomis, Fargo & Co., his soon-to-be former employer in Charlotte, North Carolina. (LogOut/ Not every agent has a case like that, he said. In March 1997, after Loomis Fargo & Company has been robbed of $18.8 million in Jacksonville by company security guard Philip Noel Johnson, Steve Eugene Chambers and Kelly Campbell, a former employee of Loomis, decides to rob the company. Hes a family man with a wife and daughter. The actual crime itself required none of Hollywood's imagination. They also bought aBMW Z3with cash and made several large purchases, including a $600 statue of aNative American. 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. All but one of the defendants pleaded guilty. 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. They had initially agreed to control their spending for a year or two, in the belief that the government would vigorously track the spending habits of any and all suspects for at least a year before relenting. People dont seem to understand human nature. 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. "Just think about it," she said. They located Steve and Shelley Chambers in their newly-purchased home at the top of a hill. Getting that off his chest calmed him some, and the conversation returned to the plan. just generally being a jerk. David got a kick out of her. He put on his best pair of jeans, a button-down shirt, and his nicest cowboy boots. Campbell was released from federal custody in 2004 after serving five years, meaning her collection case will age out in December 2024. So the original gang was all totally shocked, Wydra said. That was the thing that sticks in my mind to this day.. What that says is, We will never forgive you for what youve done.'. 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. His eyes widened and he stopped breathing as he realized that something as mundane as a malfunctioning gate might ruin their entire plan. Ghantt was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. But what the bank didnt tell Michelle, and Michelle didnt know, was that one of those forms get filled out if you ask about it, or if its close to $10,000 or if they suspect that any part of that transaction is suspicious, Wydra said. David's vision for all of this actually derived more from books than from movies. Besides her prison sentence, Campbell must undergo mental health and drug treatment and spend two years in a supervised release program. Ghantt went to Mexico leaving the money with his cohorts, thinking that he could get his share back when he needed it. To the community, the Loomis Fargo heist was a big joke -- the largest hillbilly caper of all time. Fact check: Is there much truth to the new 'Masterminds' movie? You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers, carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4, 1997. The unsolved crime mystery of Marilyn Sheppard. Many of the lesser players in the conspiracy have been the most effective in paying their debts. Expanded two-hour true crime story about the 1997 Loomis-Fargo armored car heist in North Carolina and the serio-comic fate of its bumbling underdog perpetra. All of the co-defendants were arrested the next day, about six months after the heist. Except for the kiss in the pickup truck a few weeks before the heist, Kelly had kept things platonic. shaka wear graphic tees is candy digital publicly traded ellen lawson wife of ted lawson real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist 25 Feb/23 (No Ratings Yet) You should definitely start your own blog, I highly recommend it. 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. The bag held his mobile phone and handgun. David and the trainee left the warehouse. David Scott Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4, 1997. Youre supposed to get less time for cooperating, a lesser penalty, and instead, you see what she got hit with. Gronquist said. He added that he would be able to send the trainee home at about 6:00 p.m. and would then need about an hour to load the money from carts, shelves, and the floor into a Loomis company van. He hated his job and his bosses, he'd lost hope in his marriage, he wasn't going to advance at Loomis, and he couldn't afford to quit to enroll in college. The van used to move the money was later located a few miles from the warehouse. Growing up, David had been a nice kid, a decent student who was at worst a minor troublemaker and prankster. David knew this was important from having followed the recent news about a Florida man who had brazenly committed the biggest heist from an armored-car company in United States history, a loner named Philip Noel Johnson, who also had worked for Loomis. He and co-worker Kelly Campbell, 27, had developed a close relationship and were spending time together outside of work. While Ghantt trusted Chambers enough to leave his cut behind, Chambers had other plans. Lacking a college degree, he found that his army skills felt meaningless in the 1990s job market. The bigger the amount, however, the bigger the damages to victims that likely will never be repaid: - Amy Paynes collection account was closed in 2020 with her having paid $53,000 of the $274,000 she owed. They could talk about anything, even topics he couldn't discuss with his wife. In the end, the FBI was able to capture the original gang in five months, snaring 21 individuals for their participation in the crime. FBI video shows agents searching the Cramer Mountain home and finding stacks of cash. FBI agents recall surreal story of heist that inspired - WLOS 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. The government does not run debtors prisons, says U.S. In all, agents arrested 24 people in the heist. It all went down in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the man at the center of that heist, David Scott Ghantt, now lives in Jacksonville. Campbell, a former Loomis employee and one of the original masterminds of the caper, has paid off less than $21,000 of the $4,701,694.18 she was docked. The 2016 comedy movie, Masterminds is based on the story of the Loomis Fargo Heist. The FBI heard about the plot and agents knew they could no longer wait. They succeeded in removing $17 million from the safe. In one case, the restitution for a Loomis defendant may be a moving target. Anybody who gets caught up in the system is getting chewed up by it, the now-retired Gronquist told the Observer. He also took various measures to change his appearance, such asshaving, after a patron at a restaurant pointed out to him that he looked like the man who robbed a bank of $20 million.. 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. Another name the FBI had become very interested in is Eric Payne. The plan to rob Loomis Fargo was spawned by Campbell and her friend Steve Chambers, during a casual bonfire at Chambers' home. The real 'Masterminds' Cool interesting stuff features everything odd, weird, bizzare, strange or unusual. In 2017, for example, Paul Burks of Lexington was ordered to pay $244 million to the victims of his worldwide Ponzi scheme, Zeek Rewards. contact us to submit an unexplained mystery article, or to join the team on the email address below. Steve had hired a bodyguard named Mike McKinney. Paying the money back has taken a lot longer, and time is running out for the U.S. government to collect. The old man me would never survive that, Id have a heart attack.. Ghantts spending in Mexico was extravagant at first. Conversations about stealing from the company weren't rare for Loomis employees. The Loomis case is another example where the amount of restitution ordered vs. what is actually paid are two dramatically different numbers.
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