$800,000 Stolen Jewelry Box and the Happy Ending
Everybody loves gold. It makes everything look… expensive. No wonder ancient civilizations have used gold to create their temples and relics. Up until today, gold is still considered an asset. A gram of gold today costs $50 and that’s just for a gram. Imagine if those gold candlesticks or crowns of royalty were yours.
You’d be able to afford as many Jimmy Choos and Prada shoes as you wanted. Goodbye knock-offs! All you need to do is to find large pieces of gold.
Or… What if you could steal those displays from the museum. They are antique, legit GOLD ornaments, and enough for you to have Ryan Gosling as your date this Valentines. If only stealing was not considered a crime.
If only you could go to the Smithsonian, break those display cases and steal that huge slab of gold. But you can’t. And you won’t… right? Please tell me you won’t.
The $800,000 Jewelry Box Heist
I may seem like a joke but this, unfortunately, happened at the Oakland Museum of California back in 2013. A valuable and historic jewelry box was stolen from the museum and the thief had managed to escape.
The said jewelry box is entirely made of gold, with gold-encrusted quartz stone embedded at the body. It was a Gold Rush era piece and the box was engraved with scenes from the historical California. That made the box quite exquisite and rare. It was said to be commissioned by a pioneer from California.
According to the museum, the box costs around $800,000. Sadly, the box seemed to have quite an interest with thieves. It had been previously stolen and was sold to a man who immediately returned the item upon learning that the box was stolen.
A Man Hunt For the Jewelry Box Thief
The management of the museum offered $12,000 as a reward for those who could give information about the box’s whereabouts. Subsequently the theft was widely publicized and the item was easily recognizable.
This made the search a lot easier. The thief was caught on the surveillance cameras so his image was widely broadcast. The museum’s biggest worry was the possibility that the jewelry box might be melted into a puddle of gold and be sold to black market dealers.
A Happy Ending For the Stolen Jewelry Box
And just like our favorite fairy tales, there is a happy ending for this stolen jewelry box. The jewelry box was recovered after two months and the suspect 45 year old Andre Franklin was captured. An important piece of their history was recovered. All thanks to the police, museum administration and the people of Oakland. The museum has assured the public that additional security measures were implemented to ensure the safety of all the treasures under their care. Such a happy ending isn’t it? Cliché, but nice.
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