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The robbers went on a huge spending spree, buying a massive home, artworks, big-screen TVs, expensive cars, pickup trucks, minivans, two boats, six motorcycles and several tanning beds. Back in North Carolina, Ghantts former accomplices were living high on the hog. The next day, the Chambers, Campbell and other members of the ring were arrested. The robbery was committed by Loomis vault supervisor David Scott Ghantt, his married girlfriend Kelly Campbell (a former Loomis co-worker), Steven Eugene Chambers (a one-time FBI informant), his wife Michelle Chambers, Michael Gobbies, and four other co-conspirators. More than 2 million dollars is still missing to this day. At the time of the real robbery, Chambers was facing criminal charges hed written 30K worth of bad checks and was facing jail time for it. WebCampbell made her way back to Charlotte (Ghantt was told by Chambers to head to Atlanta and catch a flight from there), where the money had since been moved into barrels and They kept several furnishings from the previous owners, including a painting of Elvis Presley on black velvet. Also charged were several innocent relatives that the robbers had enlisted to help get safety deposit boxes in various banks. Former Cramerton Police Chief David Young soon got wind of the Chambers excessive spending spree and reached out to the FBI. So Chambers decided to solve the problem by putting a hit on Ghantt. I knew that the news wouldnt break until later that morning. I didnt even know about it and overlooked it, he said. WebPerry identified the other six people arrested as Steve and Michelle Chambers; Kelly Jane Campbell, a former Loomis employee; Michael L. McKinney; Thomas Nathan Grant; Only a nickel on every dollar have been collected so far. Zaron Burnett is an investigative journalist and longform features writer based in Los Angeles. Theres some things I want to do., Ghantt planned on traveling from Mexico to the Cayman Islands, bypassing customs along the way. But his partners soon began to get greedy and were spending large amountswith Chambers and his wife, Michelle, even buying an exclusive mansion in cash. Anonymous tips had the FBI monitoring Chambers calls. She will never get beyond the debt. That was great. The jokes between Ghantt and Campbell about their disgruntlement with their jobs took on a more serious note when Campbell introduced Ghantt to an old high school classmate of hers named Steve Chambers. David Ghantt, a Gulf War veteran, had never been in trouble with the law. And to me, if it pisses them off, Im all for it.. Because Ghantt was the only employee who wasnt there that morning, he became the obvious suspect. When Ghantt called Chambers to have the latter wire him more money, Chambers sent just a few thousand dollars. Loomis Fargo Defendants Owe as Much as They Stole in 1997, FILE - Kelly Campbell, one of the 21 people convicted for their involvement in the $17 million Loomis Fargo heist, awaits sentencing for her part in the theft at her mobile home near Mount Holly, N.C. on Aug 16, 1999. Although the FBI investigation was able to quickly connect Ghantt to Campbell, connecting Ghantt to Chambers was a more difficult task. The money was successfully handed off, and Ghantt and Campbellmade their way to the Columbia airport with $50,000 and an intent to make it to Mexico by the next day, where the two would hide out while Chambers took care of things in Charlotte until it was safe to come back. Authorities said they hired a man named Michael McKinney to meet up with Ghantt and kill him, under the guise that he was planning to give Ghantt more of the money he was owed. And so, he told her, Google my name. Hes going to start bringing you money. Alright. All but one of the defendants pleaded guilty. Get the latest articles and test prep tips! He was also a former FBI informant who had tipped the bureau off to a planned robbery of a Loomis Fargo armored truck that never came to fruition. Butcher says the federal courts in the Western District of North Carolina have never handled a case quite like Loomis. Ghantt was the vault manager and was surrounded daily by millions of dollars-worth of temptation. Some of the biggest numbers remaining on the Loomis collection board, as is the case with Campbell, belong to those who played the biggest role in the crime: David Ghantt, the Loomis employee who loaded all that money 2,800 pounds in all into the back of a company van before escaping to Mexico, has paid just under $50,000 of the $3.81 million he was assessed. Web>> PHOTOS: The Loomis Fargo heist, 25 years later Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers, carried out the Loomis Fargo Burks was also ordered to serve 15 years in prison, limiting his ability to balance his books. WebAydin Properties > Uncategorized > real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist. I didnt even have a real home life because I was never there. But after she left, she reached back out to Ghantt and brought up what theyd talked about that day in the break room. Back then, it was one of the hotspots for hiding money. Ghantt planned to live off the interest for the rest of his life. Chambers served 11 years before being released. Was Loomis Fargo heist real? The Chambers, however, didnt fit in with the other members of the gated community. On September 12, 1997, six men robbed the Dunbar Armored facility on Mateo St. in Downtown Los Angeles, California of US$18.9 million (equivalent to $30.5 million in 2020). Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more. I learned something that was valuable at the time: Most criminals never leave a 250, maybe 300-mile circle from their home base. Even though they drove away with less than they had initially intended, they still had more than $17 million in hand. And I think that makes it all the more funny, because it really offends my co-defendants. Soon thereafter, he met Kelly Campbell, a co-worker at Loomis Fargo. It wasnt a big hit, but Ghantt, who was played by Galifianakis, gives it a rave review. The conversations werent made up of much more than daydreams that took the vague shape of plansuntilCampbell mentioned that she had a high school friend with connections that could actually get it done. Bubbling under the surface, however, was a deep frustration at the way he was treated. To that end, Campbell brought in her childhood friend Steve Chambers, who was characterized in the local press as a small-time drug dealer and a local fence for stolen goods, to lead the team. The morning after the height, employees of Loomis Fargo realized they couldnt open the vault. Ultimately, though, the heist wasnt Ghantts idea, which meant he didnt decide who else was involved. When she was a teacher, Hayley's students regularly scored in the 99th percentile thanks to her passion for making topics digestible and accessible. Bank name Loomis, Fargo & Co. on the evening of October 4, 1997, by vault supervisor David Scott Ghantt, his married girlfriend Kelly Campbell (a former Loomis co-worker), Steve Chambers, his wife Michelle Chambers, Michael Gobbies and four other co-conspirators. See all of the stories here. After his release, Ghantt took a job as a construction worker and was eventually brought on as a consultant for the 2016 movie Masterminds, based on the Loomis Fargo Heist. The other, suggested bythen-Observer reporter Jeff Diamant, says that Campbell created the plan with Steve Chambers,a drug dealer who was facing charges for writing $30,000 worth of bad checks, and later got Ghantt involved. While the agents initiated their investigation, the Chambers spent money as quickly as they could. I threw you out, and then threw the parachute after you. What that says is, We will never forgive you for what youve done.. Theres no way to get it back, Butcher told The Charlotte Observer. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. He stayed at a luxury hotel and took scuba diving lesson. The Dunbar Armored robbery is the largest cash robbery to have occurred in the United States. Meanwhile, Ghantt would take $50,000, as much as could legally be carried across the border without questions, and flee to Mexico. Its kind of out of sight, out of mind, she said of the reasoning. Basically, he needed a score to make his problems go away. kellis@gastongazette.com View Comments 0:03 1:14 On Oct. 4, 1997, former Kings Mountain resident David Scott Ghantt finished his shift as a vault supervisor for Loomis Fargo in Charlotte. Together, they drove in a convoy to an industrial warehouse eight miles away, where Eric Payne, a fourth accomplice was. One of the best ways to learn more about U.S. history is to make sure youre taking history classes. Neighbors and friends noticed the suspicious activity and reported the members to the FBI. They paid for all of it in cash. The plan went off with few problems, but after Ghantt was safely in Mexico, his partners were left storing large amounts of cash. The best states in the U.S. come from coast to coast. And Ghantt hadnt really thought about the physical challenge of moving such a large sum of money. Getting restitution, its like pulling teeth.. His collection case closes in two years. Another accomplice, Eric Payne, took a three week, unpaid vacation, had his wife quit her job as a receptionist and bought a new Harley Davidson, Chevy Tahoe, big-screen TV, computer and new trailer. Three weeks later, the couple purchased, in cash, a $635,000 stone mansion. I wanted to make a drastic change and I went for it, Ghantt remembered later to the Gaston Gazette. Where I was going was right there near the Cayman Islands. A couple weeks pass, and I call again, Hey, Id like to get some more money. Chambers had no intention of following those rules, believing the FBI would never connect him to Ghantt. Two days later, when the FBI found the Loomis Fargo armored van, they discovered almost $3.3 million in cash left in the back of the van; it was later discovered that the thieves had miscalculated the sheer bulk of the small denomination currency, and that they simply left the cash that they could not take with them in the back of the van. Records show the government has garnished his Social Security checks. The barrels were Steves idea, Ghantt says. David Ghantt was the vault supervisor for Loomis, Fargo & Co. armored cars, which managed the transportation of large sums of cash between banks in North Carolina. David Scott Ghantt was the vault supervisor at the regional branch of Loomis, Fargo & Co. in Charlotte, North Carolina. I mentioned it to Kelly. WebCampbell left her job in the summer of 1997, but she would later use Ghantts feelings for her to her own advantage to get him to agree to carry out the multi-million-dollar heist. Naturally, Ghantt started to run out of cash and turned to Chambers, who was annoyed by his requests for more money. Webbird adoption adelaide real life kelly campbell loomis fargo. Eventually, Ghantt called in from Mexico, seeking more money, and the FBI officially recognized Chambers as a co-conspirator. Of course, I went on a spending spree. As he later recalled about his life before the 1997 heist that changed his life forever: Prior to, I would have never even considered it but one day life kinda slapped me in the face. 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. I had to go in there and tell her the whole story, and she was real cool about it. While making only eight dollars an hour in his role as supervisor, Ghantt decided it was time to do something: I was unhappy with my life. October 26, 1999. I was working sometimes 75-80 hrs a week for $8.15 an hour, I didnt even have a real home life because I was never there I was working all the time and unhappy which is understandable considering how old I was at the time. Campbell left her job in the summer of 1997, but she would later use Ghantts feelings for her to her own advantage to get him to agree to carry out the multi-million-dollar heist. Chambers and two accomplices, making their way to Vale in order to put the barrels in his home, left behind the staggering $3.3 million that didnt fit and the two security tapes in the Loomis Fargo van that Ghantt had driven. Loomis Fargo employee David Ghantt and his partners nearly pulled off the perfect crime, but it would be their lavish spending, and an alleged murder plot, that would be their undoing. You might as well take it all, Ghantt tells me. Criminals dont usually get high-paying jobs after leaving prison. We spoke to the FBI agents who investigated the case who say the real-life masterminds couldnt contain their spending-spree. Its heavy. WebLoomis Fargo Robbery There is a vault reserved for only the most outrageous, preposterous, and far-fetched real life stories. Or that hed gotten lucky gambling. Ghantt sent home a new employee and quickly loaded the money into the back of a bank van. If you want to go ahead and go, I got it. Stay informed daily on the latest news and advice on COVID-19 from the editors at U.S. News & World Report. With the plan in place, Ghantt sent a newly employed co-worker home early (reportedly at 6 p.m) who had been assigned to train with him. Next month, Payne will back in the Charlotte federal courthouse, this time to be sentenced from weapons and methamphetamine trafficking charges. Thats where they feel comfortable., This piece of information would become critical to his getaway plan. Retro CharlotteFBI security footage of David Ghantt in the midst of the Loomis Fargo heist. Chambers and his wife Michele moved out of a trailer and into a luxury mansion in a nice neighborhood. Chambers wife, Michelle, bought a minivan in cash and began taking frequent trips to the bank to make deposits. Some amateur thieves might turn to movies and TV shows for lessons on criminal behavior. Things went from bad to worse when, in November, Michelle strolled into a bank with a briefcase filled with 200 grand and asked the manager, How much can I deposit without the bank reporting the transaction? When she showed the bank manager that she really had the money to invest, the cash was still bound in Loomis Fargo wrappers. The pal part is true: The real amateur killer Chambers sent couldnt pull off the crime after traveling to Mexico. The Loomis Fargo heist became something of a media lightning rod. The Loomis case is another example where the amount of restitution ordered vs. what is actually paid are two dramatically different numbers. The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 4+ ACT Points, How to Get a Perfect 36 ACT, by a Perfect Scorer. In August 1997, Campbell informed Ghantt of an old high school friend of hers, Steve Chambers, who could assist Ghantt in executing a massive cash robbery of the Loomis Fargo vault in one night. Will Mcintyre/The LIFE Images Collection/Getty Images. 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. It was over. The Latest Innovations That Are Driving The Vehicle Industry Forward, More than $100 million of property stolen, Diamonds, gold, silver and other type of jewelry. Federal law stops government collection efforts 20 years after a defendant leaves prison. Get an all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more! Truth be told, Ghantt had something of a crush on Campbell, and so, he told her exactly how hed pull off such a heist. He didnt even really question me. His partners, who planned to stay behind, agreed to send him his full cut of the money after the heat from investigators had died down. The 5 Strategies You Must Be Using to Improve 160+ SAT Points, How to Get a Perfect 1600, by a Perfect Scorer, Free Complete Official SAT Practice Tests. To make a successful getaway, Ghantt had to lift nearly 2,800 pounds of currency. So Im like, Can you get a move on with my money? After a couple of weeks passed, I get a phone call from Kelly: Okay, Brunos coming to you, blah, blah, blah. So I get a phone call from this guy, and I tell him where to meet me. Twenty people were convicted of roles big and small in the massive 1997 armored-car warehouse heist in west Charlotte. Dozens of FBI agents everywhere. At 6:40 p.m., he headed to his car along with three other employees before returning to the depository, where hed propped open the door. Why do we feel its so necessary to treat people like this, to say, OK, well just ruin the rest of your life because you made a bad decision., Punishment should not last a lifetime. WebGhantt was joking in the breakroom with fellow Loomis Fargo employee Kelly Campbell. It was an open-and-shut case and all authorities had to do now was to find the culprit and identify Ghantts accomplices. And youre like, Come on parachute. The thieves had simply abandoned whatever they couldnt carry away. Ghantt, Chambers, and Campbell came up with the following plan: Ghantt would remain in the vault after his shift on the night of the heist, Oct. 4, 1997, and let his co-conspirators into the vault. The FBI was also surveilling Kelly Campbell and followed her to a pay phone that she used to place calls to Mexico. As soon as Corey left, I pretended like I was leaving. Ghantt didnt actually meet Chambers until the night of the heist, though, according to Diamant, who would go on to write a book about it. Michele Chambers 1998 BMW for sale following the prosecutions of the Loomis Fargo heist conspirators. The plan was to split the money three ways: Chambers, Campbell and Ghantt would each walk away with what Ghantt estimated to be $5 million a piece the kind of money that changes lives forever. We need to set up some way for me to get my money. She said, We got it all worked out. By the time the month concluded, the couple had purchased a 7,000-square-foot stone mansion in a gated country club community. So yeah, Ghantt continues, I took a bus from there to Atlanta, and then I hopped a cab from the bus station to the airport in Atlanta., Back in North Carolina, his accomplices were working as fast as they could to hide the $17 million. The two struck up a friendship during work that would continue after Campbell left the Florida Gov. Or as he tells me, How many people in the United States havent thought about robbing a bank? Hes very articulate. In the wee hours of the morning, Chambers and the Erics drove back to the town of Vale, North Carolina, and holed up in a double-wide trailer while counting their cash. They lived lavishly: Mastermind Steve Chambers (Owen Wilson) moved from a mobile home to a large home in a gated community, paid for in cash alerting authorities. , out of sight, out of cash and turned to Chambers was more! What theyd talked about that day in the Western District of North have! Went on a spending spree run out of mind, she said of the Chambers who. My co-defendants that would continue after Campbell left the Florida Gov to more. Agents who investigated the case who say the real-life masterminds couldnt contain their spending-spree shows for lessons criminal... 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