Once thought of movie burglars as mere fiction, but turns out, they were just scratching the surface. Recently, the ever-glamorous Los Angeles witnessed its grandest theft yet, with a cash vault heist where a staggering $30 million vanished into thin air.
The thief chose Easter Sunday as the time to commit the crime. It wasn't until Monday when the staff opened the vault that they discovered the money was missing. So, the thief managed to steal amidst the hustle and bustle of one night without anyone noticing.
Recreating "Ocean's Eleven," "Now You See Me," and "Fast & Furious," huh? I can't even list all the movie titles, but none of them come close to your real-life heist antics.
So, what's the deal here?
The stolen cash vault belongs to a company called GardaWorld, headquartered in Canada. With 120,000 employees and operations spanning dozens of countries worldwide, GardaWorld is a major player in the security industry, even running an armored car fleet.
Among the array of services offered is cash management, where a company's funds are securely stored on-site before being deposited into a bank. It seems like the most fortified place on earth.
Yet, despite sounding ultra-secure, elite thieves in the United States target precisely that.
Even the police are still unable to determine exactly how the thief carried out the crime.
Based on current information, all that is known is that the thief may have broken through the roof to gain entry into the vault, proceeded to tamper with the safe, and ultimately made off with the money.
Later, there was footage showing holes in the warehouse walls, which were subsequently covered with wooden boards, indicating that this area was likely the entrance to the tunnel used by thieves.
Even if one knows the entrance, the specifics of how to steal remain a head-scratcher for most. According to experts in the field, facilities of this nature typically don't rely solely on a single vault door. Usually, there are two sets of alarm systems outside the vault, along with earthquake motion detectors, and additional monitoring systems throughout the entire building. Not to mention the security personnel, patrols, and surveillance in place.
A retired police officer believes that not only was the crime committed by a gang, but it was also carefully planned and required inside and outside cooperation. Taking away $30 million in cash isn't a simple task. Can you guess how much 30 million in cash weighs?
If we assume that a $100 bill weighs 1 gram, then the weight of 30 million would be 600 pounds. That amount of money could build a wall!
So it's not just a matter of pocketing the money and walking away; if you want to transport it, you'll need at least a vehicle to load it into.
How did the thief know there was a large amount of cash stored here?
Upon closer inspection, it seems they not only knew there was money here, but they also likely had a well-thought-out plan in advance, choosing the right time and understanding the security staff's duty schedule. Their heist could be described as rather smooth, as alarms might have gone off at the time but went unreported, giving them ample time to grab the cash and make a clean getaway.
It sounds like stealing money was easier for them than me going to the bank to withdraw cash.
Tracking the money might be a bit of a mixed bag. On one hand, tracing it through serial numbers isn't likely to yield much success. The cash, as described, likely comes from various sources, making it challenging to track.
But on the other hand, it's quite challenging for thieves to perfectly hide 30 million dollars in cash. Moreover, with the advancement of modern technology, even the slightest mistake left at the scene could potentially expose the thief's identity, leading to the apprehension of their accomplices.
After reading this news, netizens couldn't help but criticize.
Everyone's initial reaction was that there must be an insider involved, and they might have already fled to Mexico.
Some speculate that the thief might be dumbfounded right now, realizing they've lost $3,000. Others feel that maybe the warehouse was empty at the time, making the theft as casual as grocery shopping.
Internet users are clamoring for a movie to be made ASAP, with the plot already mapped out: Picture this - a heartless corporation withholding retirement funds from its employees, maliciously "graduating" them. Meanwhile, a retired master thief finds themselves unwittingly employed by this very company. Driven to desperation, they're forced to dust off their skills and take matters into their own hands to reclaim what's rightfully theirs.
In fact, it's possible that this case isn't as complex as it seems. Sometimes the methods of these thieves are surprisingly simple. For instance, in 2022, a thief managed to pull off the largest jewelry heist in American history in just 27 minutes.
At the time, it was the security company Brink responsible for transporting a batch of jewelry. However, the transport process was not as heavily armed as in the movies. In reality, these valuable items, worth millions or even billions, were all packed into a truck, with only two security guards on duty.
When one of the guards got off the truck to eat, the other guard on board happened to fall asleep due to the rush of the journey. That's when the thief struck, prying open the truck's door lock and making off with 22 bags of jewelry unnoticed. It wasn't until the guard returned from his meal that he realized the goods were gone.
The jewelry was estimated to be worth $100 million, but it could also be valued at just over $8 million. However, regardless of the exact figure, both amounts are astronomical. The key point is that so far, neither the thief nor the jewelry has been found.
So, what should we do if the $30 million cash theft in Los Angeles goes unsolved?
Well, netizens have come up with a solution. In essence, isn't this just a form of "zero-dollar purchase"? Just change the perspective, and the problem is easily solved.
(The images and information in the document are sourced from the internet.)
