Fourteen defendants were ordered to make restitution payments to Loomis Fargo totaling almost $19 million. For a better shopping experience, please upgrade now. All but one of the 24 defendants pleaded guilty, and the one who didnt take the deal was convicted. As a child, he had preferred reading to playing sports, and he would say, as an adult, that although he couldn't have told you "who was on first," he knew as a kid who the Egyptian god of the dead was. Campbell used to work for Loomis and continued the friendship with Ghantt, eventually hooking him up with Chambers. OWLS director fired in wake of new board taking over, New rules will require flood history disclosure in real estate, North Carolina recreational spring flounder season canceled for 2023, Supreme Court seems ready to sink student loan forgiveness, Beach commission gets update on search for new sources of sand for beach nourishment. 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Carolina House GOP again modifies rules on veto overrides, Murdoch says some Fox hosts 'endorsed' false election claims, Havelock officials warn public about alligator near Walmart, Cape Carteret buys new utility vehicle to aid in picking up litter, New taxi, shuttle business seeks license to operate in Morehead City, Report: Navy ships face growing maintenance delays, costs, Fisheries division to survey for-hire watermen, National Enquirer, ensnared in catch-and-kill is sold. Down in Jacksonville, a Loomis Fargo employee took $18 million from an armored van he was driving. 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. You can garnish wages. ", "I don't need any more friends," she'd shot back. Twenty people were convicted of roles big and small in the massive 1997 armored-car warehouse heist in west Charlotte. They also found several stacks of money with Loomis bands still attached throughout all the homes searched. 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.. On Oct. 5, the Loomis heist celebrates its 25th birthday. Kelly Campbell, 29, a former company employee, entered guilty pleas earlier to bank larceny, money laundering and conspiracy to commit murder charges. He decided at that moment that if Kelly called again, he would go for it. 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. He waffled on the heist idea three or four times from late August to mid-September. It was the second-largest. Steve Chambers and his wife were living in a trailer and upgraded to what would today be a multi-million-dollar mansion at Cramer Mountain. Still facing possible unknowns of other people involved, the FBI needed to gather more information without the suspects getting suspicious of them. It was 2:00 p.m. on October 4, 1997, and tension was building between two planners of what would rank high among the largest heists in United States history. Well she was a pretty happy-go-lucky person, he said. 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. The plan was for Ghantt to commit the actual robbery and then quickly leave the country forMexico but to leave the bulk of the cash with Chambers. The bag held his mobile phone and handgun. Getting restitution, its like pulling teeth., White-collar criminals are pretty good at hiding their money,, Youre supposed to get less time for cooperating, a lesser penalty, and instead, you see what she got hit with., She will never get beyond the debt. Loomis Fargo Defendants Owe as Much as They Stole in 1997 He realized his life wouldn't improve unless he did something drastic. In Gastonia, David would run into high-school classmates who had never struck him as especially smart. Sure enough, she called a few days later, around September 16. Chambers would then occasionally wire Ghantt money and see to his basic financial needs; when the heat was off, Ghantt was to re-enter the U.S. and the money would be split up among all of the co-conspirators. Investigators also found Ghantts pickup truck, abandoned at the warehouse. More calls between the two men, and also between Steve and Kelly Campbell, made it clear that the group was starting to turn on David Ghantt. Investigators considered Ghantt to be the prime suspect almost from the beginning. The investigation ultimately resulted in the conviction of eight people directly involved, as well as sixteen others who had indirectly helped them. None of the suspects had been in any serious trouble before this. Records show the government has garnished his Social Security checks. Punishment needs to be fair and realistic. FBI agents recall surreal story of heist that inspired - WLOS How he and his wife had trouble communicating. 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. The building was configured so vans could drive inside and pull up next to the vault. But he wasn't finished. Loomis Fargo defendants owe as much as they stole in 1997 How he felt shorted by life. Heist! He called Kelly to say he was coming and hopped into the driver's seat of the loaded Loomis van. He stayed at it until the vault was empty. It wasn't how much you stole that mattered most; it was that you had stolen in the first place. The unfairness gnawed at him, stirred by Kelly's questions. Driving away, he said he felt a mix of fear, confidence and excitement that he outsmarted the FBI. After marrying Tammy in 1992, he worked fueling airplanes at the airport in Hilton Head, South Carolina. 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. 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. 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. '. Since then, there have been numerous articles, books, documentaries and even a movie about this gang -- the gang that couldnt shoot straight. 'When you have money, you just have different problems': The Loomis Only a nickel on every dollar have been collected so far. 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. These (Loomis) guys, not so much.. Booklist "Librariesshould consider purchasing this entertaining and lightly edited version, which reads like a fast-paced novel." 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. Of course the most famous thing inside the home was a velvet Elvis portrait. After hanging up on her, David returned to work. Getting that off his chest calmed him some, and the conversation returned to the plan. In 2017, for example, Paul Burks of Lexington was ordered to pay $244 million to the victims of his worldwide Ponzi scheme, Zeek Rewards. David was thin six-foot-one, one hundred sixty-five pounds and heaving the stacks onto the cart, pushing the cart toward the vault door, and then emptying its contents into the van was exhausting. 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. Meanwhile, Ghantt's gang spent wildly and paid their family members and friends to hide money. 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. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. 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. He is a graduate of Yale and has worked for the Connecticut Post, the Associated Press, and the Palm Beach Post. It has a certain feel, a smell and weight to it. Michelle Chambers paid off only $27,000. Learn how to enable JavaScript on your browser. The defendants received sentences ranging from probation for several relatives to over 11 years in federal prison for Steve Chambers. But they'd stayed in touch, and now they were poised to attempt a crime like almost no other. CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Kelly Campbell, the woman who helped plan the $17 million robbery of armored-car company Loomis, Fargo was sentenced yesterday to nearly six years in prison and ordered to. They kept several furnishings from the previous owners, including avelvet Elvis. Tuesday marked 25 years since a group of buddies pulled off the third-largest money grab in U.S. history -- the Loomis Fargo heist. Unexplained Mysteries - owned by Aliens since 2011. His collection case, which closes in November 2026, got credit for the couples $540,000 house on Cramer Mountain in Gaston County, Butcher says. Notifications from this discussion will be disabled. TWO TO ENTER GUILTY PLEAS IN ARMORED-CAR ROBBERY - Greensboro News and "its a great readsuspenseful, often funny, just the thing for those wondering what it might feel like to have, as these hapless, small-town criminals did, literally too darn much cash lying around. " 2023 Cox Media Group. Steve Chambers would keep the rest. Thank you! In one case, the restitution for a Loomis defendant may be a moving target. In August 1997, Campbell informed Ghantt about an old high school friend of hers named Steve Chambers, who could assist Ghantt to execute a massive cash robbery of the Loomis Fargo vault in one night. Well they were in some sense celebrities, Gronquist said. But you cant get blood from a stone, Johns said. 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. Ghantt didnt know the full extent of what was happening back home -- how that lay low plan turned into a flurry of extravagant spending. By using this website, you accept the terms of our Visitor Agreement and Privacy Policy, and understand your options regarding Ad Choices. 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. Michelle Chambers received a few more months than Ghantt, because she had violated several bond conditions. (LogOut/ It all went down in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the man at the center of that heist, David Scott Ghantt, now lives in Jacksonville. October 1997 Loomis Fargo robbery - Wikipedia In all, agents arrested 24 people in the heist. When Ghantt called Campbell however, the FBI was able to track his location, and arrested him with the help of the Mexican police onMarch 1, 1998. Guller was the attorney for Steven Chambers, who came up with the original idea for the Loomis theft. Stealing from Loomis Fargo could make him rich, if he got away with it. That sounds like a lot of money until its compared to the $18,930,201.26 the group was ordered to pay.

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