Judging by the raging succeeder ofdiamondthieves in Hollywood motion picture , one might reckon walking away with millions in diamond is a snap . Or at the very least , a sure matter with the ripe amount of provision , cunning , skilful expression and some sort of inside connection . In the substantial world , of course , slipping out with the gems takes more than two hour of careful consideration .

But such rip-off do work at times and happen reasonably frequently . Every twain of years or so , a squad of thieves get away with adiamond heist . A heist is no mere robbery . It ’s a feat of patience and engineering that yields some of the big payouts in history . The weird thing is , it ’s arduous to state if the thief ever see thecash , since in almost every major heist , the diamonds are never find .

Are they swallow up under the floorboards of an give up cellar somewhere ? Were they sold to foreign prince on the down low ? Or is that rhombus in the jewellery store ’s windowpane the very same that was steal from the Antwerp Diamond Center in 2003 and launder through middlemen until it was clear enough for a licit jeweler to give it a second coup d’oeil ? We ’ll probably never jazz . But this much is for sure : The thieves who go for the gamy - surety diamond have grit .

In this article , we ’ll look at 10 of the vainglorious baseball field heists in history , all of which go down in the last few decade . We ’ll see how the stealer pay off the goodness , how much they steal and what happened in the aftermath . Each heist in this clause is the stuff of fable . Are you ready for the first ?

10: A Nearly Golden Getaway (1983)

Where : Brinks - MAT warehouse , Heathrow Airport , London , England

When : Nov. 26 , 1983

How much : or so $ 39 million

The baseball diamond in this heist are something of a footer , but the filmy doggedness of the thieves on this one earn it suitable of our list .

In 1983 , thieves plotted and intrigue to steal millions in cash . So what were they to do when they infract into the Brinks - MAT storage warehouse at Heathrow Airport to find three lots ofgold bullioninstead ?

The robbers had inner helper , thanks to the fact that one of the warehouse security guards was related to one of the criminals . With the guard ’s detailed cognition of the warehouse layout and security department subprogram , the team of six thieves managed to raid the warehouse quickly and stay the other guards . But although they had the inner soap , they oddly did n’t know about the gold .

As a termination , they did n’t have a vehicle big enough to slip all of the cherished metal , but they did the proficient they could under the circumstances . Their planned five - minute robbery wound up call for closer to two hours , as they laboriously moved bullion by handwriting . As an added incentive , they also launch a pile of cut and uncutdiamonds .

In the days after the robbery , detectives pinpoint the two - face security guard as their prime objective , and he quickly ratted out the identities of the thieves . Some of the humans were caught shortly thereafter and doom to prison house .

9: Machine Guns and Gems (1994)

Where : Carlton Hotel , Cannes , France

When : August 1994

How much : Approximately $ 60 million

The Carlton Hotel is a luxurious space . It ’s so fancy , in fact , that it has its own jewelry shop . And in 1994 , that shop became the target of one of the biggest gem heists ever .

This robbery relied less on elaborated schemes and more on brute force and fear . At the workshop ’s closing time , three mask men breeze into the store and begin sprayingmachine gunshot .

Understandably , customers and employee panicked , and as multitude fled or huddled in terror , the human swept jewels into bag and made their escape with a haul valued at roughly $ 60 million . They were never get the picture , and the gem were never recovered .

Yet , as policeinvestigated the crime scene , they quickly realized one important detail – there were no heater hollow in the walls or ceiling . The robber had been fuel dummy .

8: The Millennium Star Fake-Out (2000)

Where : Millennium Dome , London , England

When : 2000

How much : roughly $ 700 million

In ecumenical , diamondheists almost always have a cinematic feel to them . There ’s painstaking planning , in high spirits play and the fortune that one piddling thing will go incorrectly and ruin the entire plot . But few undertake heist have the suspense and Hollywood finish of this near - disk heist .

In 2000 , thieves essay to steal $ 700 million Charles Frederick Worth of diamonds from London ’s Millennium Dome . include in the intended loot were the world - famous Millennium Star diamond , press in at 203.04 kt , and 12 blasphemous diamond , weighing a totality of 118 carats , all owned by baseball field pudding stone De Beers .

Stealing these gem would mean unfathomable riches , so the criminals did n’t go cheap on preparations . They came prepared with the weapons and tools to do the job right .

The thieves were heavily armed and contrive gas canisters into the Dome to overcompensate their entrance . Wearinggas masks , they run in and smash the exhibit casing with sledge . They were about to take hold of the rhomb when police force officers , dressed as clean bunch , rushed in and keep out them down . The police had been tip off before the stickup and had already arrest the speedboat that was the alleged getaway vehicle .

Even if the robbers had managed to snaffle the gem and flight , they would have been distraught at their haul . The dark before the endeavor , authority had replaced the real gems with fakes just to be sure they remained dependable no matter the result of the maraud .

7: Night at the Museum (2002)

Where : The Museon Museum of Science , The Hague

When : Dec. 1 or 2 , 2002

How much : Approximately $ 12 million

In December 2002,thievespulled off one of the most inexplicablediamondheists of all time . The Museon , a science museum in The Hague , Netherlands , was putting on a phenomenal diamond exhibit intended to train the public about the gems . There were purple pieces on show , as well as jewellery contribute to the Museon by other museum and secret collectors .

The most valuable piece disappeared either Sunday night or Monday morning . Because the museum is closed on Mondays , the thievery go undetected for at least a day . Museum officials came in on Tuesday to find that six of the exhibit ’s 28 display case were empty .

The Museon had 24 - hour security guards monitor entering and passing , as well as 24 - minute surveillance - television camera footage that covered every straightforward column inch of the showing . The cabinet were all in amotion - detectionzone , and the showing that house the most valuable opus ( the displays the thieves emptied ) were made of reinforce glass .

To this daylight , no one has any estimation how the heist happen . Nothing show up on the video footage , the guards never go through a thing , the gesture sensors never go off and the display cabinets showed no grounds of tampering . The only sign of a break - in were a undivided smash window leading into the museum – and the empty cases . The flawlessness of the heist suggests inside information , but investigators have been unable to make any link between the looting and museum staff .

The Museon has n’t released details about exactly which jewels were slip , but insider notice that a hymeneals talent given by King William III to Queen Mary II of England in the 1600s was among the Museon ’s prized pieces [ beginning : NIS News Bulletin ] . The museum finally put a price tag of about $ 12 million on the looting , but since many of the stolen piece had historical import , the haul is really invaluable .

The gems will probably never turn up for auction because they ’re too far-famed to go unnoticed by anyone in the jewelry earth . And after several yr of investigating without a single lead , detective have closed the case .

If invisible thieves can get away with $ 12 million in stones , what do the very visible , well - arm and dangerous eccentric go home with ? No . 6 in our countdown is a possible record circuit breaker .

6: I’m Sorry, but That’s Impossible (2003)

Where : Antwerp Diamond Center , Antwerp , Belgium

When : Feb. 16 , 2003

How much : just about $ 100 million

One of the largest rhomb holdup ever took place in Antwerp , Belgium , in 2003 . With a confirmed value of at least $ 100 million , the complex crime go down in the account books .

Antwerp is one of the twodiamondcapitals in the universe . The other one isDubai , in the United Arab Emirates . Eighty percent of the humankind ’s uncut gem go through Antwerp , and many of them are stored for various periods in the underground vault of the Antwerp Diamond Center edifice .

Of the 160 safety deposit boxes where diamond brokers leave their Harlan F. Stone ( often just overnight ) while broker mint , only 123 were emptied of their contents . Thethieveshad so many diamonds to conduct that they were push to leave 37 vaults unopened , and Diamond Center employee came in to find loose diamond strewn about the bank vault .

At least four people had been planning the stealing for days . They engage office space in the construction in 2000 , analyzed thealarm systemand learned how to short-circuit it . They also obtained key to the vault and made written matter . On the mean solar day of the good luck - in , they immortalize over the certificate tv camera and enclose phoney tape into the surveillance system to cover their movement . All of these ordinate actions suggest an privileged caper , and as it twist out , it was .

The gang was discover as a group known as the School of Turin – a " magnificent " chemical group of stealer that never uses violence . One fellow member is known as the King of Thieves , and insider refer to another one as the Magician with the Keys [ source : BBC News ] . The investigating consequently led to Italy , and most of the grouping were arrest by Antwerp police work in conjunction with Italian jurisprudence enforcement . One of the thief had left hisDNAon a half - rust sandwich among rhomb - carrying bags dumped in a ditch near the offense scene . Another stealer ’s DNA was found in the vault . He had acted as a diamond merchandiser for years , seemingly storing stones in the Diamond Center , and had somehow passed all of the Center ’s ground checks .

Most of the stealer are inprison , but the $ 100 million Charles Frederick Worth of diamond and other treasure they stole have never been ground . Italian constabulary disclose some of the loot in a vault in Italy and photographed the item for confirmation , but by the time Antwerp authorities arrived to collect the stolen stones , they were gone – removed from yet another supposedly secure placement .

The next one on our list is n’t the large haul , but it is quite possibly the most impressive . How can you beat the longsighted con ?

Where : Schiphol Airport , Amsterdam

When : Feb. 25 , 2005

How much : perhaps $ 118 million ( unconfirmed )

This one get the list for its sheerdollaramount . Because many of the stolen Stone were uncut ( and uncut rock are difficult to put a definite value on ) , an absolute figure has never been confirmed . But if the roughly $ 118 million estimate is correct , the Amsterdamairportheist is the largestdiamondheist ever .

The heist was more like something out of a mobster film than a advanced plot like " Ocean ’s Thirteen " – it was a truck hijacking , plain and wide-eyed . Two hebdomad before the heist , the thieves did a psychometric test run in a stolen KLM Cargo truck . At least one of the thieves broke into the consignment area at Schiphol airdrome and made certain everything was in order . Then on Feb. 25 , wearing slip KLM uniform and drive yet another stolen KLM truck , the gang drove aright up to a truck carrying diamonds intended for a flight to Antwerp . With plenty of people watch , the team forced the machine driver out of the truck at gunpoint , had them lie facedown on the terra firma , hop into the truck and drove off .

Since the thief apparently knew which truck to target and how to get their hands on KLM uniform and a KLM truck ( doubly ) , police suspect inside assistance . Diamond merchant who lost millions in gem blame the airport ’s hapless surety . And the heist was actually the second time in six month that the cargo terminal had been infiltrated [ source : BBC News ] . detective have n’t regain the stone .

It ’s probable the diamonds steal in the next debut on our lean will never show up again , either . They ’re too far-famed .

4: A Chocolate for Your Key? (2007)

Where : ABN Amro Bank , Antwerp , Belgium

When : March 2 , 3 or 4 , 2007

How much : around $ 28 million

No one have a go at it his real name , but the stave members at the ABN Amrobankin Antwerp’sdiamonddistrict love him as Carlos Hector Flomenbaum . Flomenbaum charge himself as a successful businessman , and he ’d frequented the bank for at least a year . The depository financial institution ’s employees loved the guy , described as a gray - hairy man between the ages of 55 and 60 , mouth American - accent English and brandishing an Argentinean passport . He wreak the bank ’s workers boxes ofchocolates , blab to them about non - diamond - refer subject and ultimately gain ground their trust to the extent that he was given dignitary entree to the bank vault .

At the banking concern , certain client are give keys so they can access their adamant at odd time of day . Flomenbaum became one of these trusted fundamental holders , and sometime between March 2 and March 5 , 2007 , he let himself into the vault and walked out the front door with 120,000 carats of diamonds .

The ABN Amro banking company has a $ 2 million security department organisation . But " Flomenbaum " never had to deal with that . He used his mountain pass card to get into the vault , went directly for the field that he have it off hold uncut diamonds and evacuate five of the depository box . Antwerp ’s diamond merchants were stunned . It ’s still undecipherable how a human being with what turned out to be a stolenpassportcould have fade the bank ’s background checks .

Among the stolen muffin were 41 naughty and two exceedingly rare green stones . In all , the haul was worth about $ 28 million .

3: The Italian Job (2008)

Where : The Damiani saleroom in Milan , Italy

When : Feb. 3 , 2008

How much : about $ 20 million

This next one begins with a char in Milan complaining to police at least once about early - morning noise in her neighborhood . Because there was a construction projection go on nearby , nothing came from her complaint ; the police ( and everyone else ) picture that the noise was get along from the workman . No one see that the woman know practically next door to the world - famous Damiani jewellery showroom .

Damiani ’s building was impregnable , with a high - techalarm systemand an armed guard duty at the front door . None of that really mattered , though , since thethieveshad been bore a hole every morning through the 4 - foot ( 1.2 - meter ) wall that part the showroom cellar from the basement next door .

Their timing was almost perfect . The storage had been preparing for a individual showing , so there were no customer in the showroom – just faculty members who could get to the hurdle . The thieves wear down simulated or stolen police uniforms and popped up in the showroom through an inside , unguarded entry , at 10 a.m. Unarmed , and apparently relying on surprisal and disguise , they asked to see sure shop records and then swoop , splice and gagging the staff . They temporarily undo one employee to get to the secure . The functioning took about a half time of day , sack about $ 20 million indiamonds , rubies and Au [ seed : NY Post ] .

So what was the only flaw in such a high-flown heist ? The thieves would have made off with much more had it not beenOscartime . Some of the most valuable pieces were out on loan to Hollywood ’s maven , including Oscar succeeder Tilda Swinton , who wore Damiani ’s " Sahara Bracelet , " digest 1,865 diamonds tot more than 47 carats [ source : Reuters ] . The investigation is ongoing . Police suspect an inside caper – the timing was just too everlasting .

2: Drag Queen Diamonds (2008)

Where : Harry Winston memory , Paris , France

When : Dec. 4 , 2008

How much : Approximately $ 107 million

As robberies go , this downtown Paris heist was put to death in a relatively cultivated , genteel manner . Perhaps that ’s because it was bear bywomen– or at least , mendressed to seem like women .

On Dec. 4 , 2008 , four gun - toting robber entered the Harry Winston computer memory and made off with roughly $ 107 million worth of jewelry anddiamonds . That ’s just light of the track record - set mammoth haul of $ 127 million in diamonds ask in Antwerp in 2003 .

At about 5:30 p.m. , the four men – at least some of whom had donned female wear and wig – sauntered nonchalantly into the Winston store , which was right down the street from a Parisian police station . They right away went into action mechanism , menacing employee and client with handguns .

There ’s no doubt that the robbers were already familiar with the stock and its employees , who they allegedly phone by their first names . They also knew the location of secret safe located throughout the storehouse .

Within 20 minutes , the still - at - large criminals had cleared out much of the storehouse ’s inventory , include diamond rings , watches , necklaces and much more . Then , they calmly and quietly exit the computer memory , drove away and were never seen again .

They had a architectural plan , great disguises and a clean lam . But this next curing of diamond - madden malefactor give behind a clue that chair to their eventual arrests .

1: From Prosthetics to Prison (2008)

Where : Graff Diamonds , London , England

When : Aug. 6 , 2009

How much : Approximately $ 65 million

At just before 5 p.m. , two men wearing suits entered the store . They looked the part of just about any other wealthymenlooking to buy expensive gems and jewellery , but really , their face enounce nothing about them at all .

That ’s because they had visited aprofessional makeup artist , who interpolate their skin color , appliedprostheticsto change the shapes of their faces and ultimately made them look to be entirely different people .

They put their altered appearances to apply by waltzing brazenly into the store , unveiling handguns and threatening employees , who hastily unbarred display grammatical case . In all , the man made off with more than 40 pieces of jewelry appreciate at a whopping $ 65 million .

They choke the entrepot , fired at least one gunfire to affright and fuddle witnesses , and then push away . A scant while later , they swop fomite ( and fired another shot for good measure ) and hotfoot away from the scene .

But the robbers send a forehead - slapping blunder . During their hasty escape , they left acell phonein one of their getaway railroad car . police force used numbers on the headphone to cut across down the men , and on Aug. 20 , authorisation charged Solomon Beyene and Craig Calderwood with conspiracy to perpetrate looting and assay murder , among other offence .

From there , the police made more and more arrests , amount 10 mankind in all . And although they apprehended the perpetrators , they never recovered the slip merchandise .

So whether thethievesare using a sledgehammer or a really sincere smile , there are at least a couple of things the big diamond heists have in common . First , a successful stickup typically involve inside avail . After all , we ’re talking about the most highly defend carbon copy in the macrocosm . And second , while the stealer may be caught , the diamonds are almost never establish .

Learn more about diamonds , diamond thieves and other related to issue on the next page .

Lots More Information

Sources

Tran , Mark . " Graff Diamonds Robber Aman Kassaye Jailed for 23 Years . " The Guardian . Aug. 6 , 2010 . ( Nov. 15 , 2011 ) http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/aug/06/graff-diamonds-robber-jailed