thief

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After Theft, Roaring Lion Is Back Home

Portrait of Winston Churchill by Yousuf Karsh that was stolen a few years ago is now back in Ottawa

(Newser) - A stolen portrait of Winston Churchill that was swapped with a forgery during the pandemic has returned to its rightful place, after two Ottawa police detectives traveled to Rome to retrieve it. Police said The Roaring Lion was stolen from the Fairmont Chateau Laurier hotel in Ottawa, sometime between Christmas...

'Gentleman' Thief Who Stole Munch's The Scream Dead at 57
He Stole The Scream,
Hid It in Living Room Table
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jul 6, 2024 12:00 PM CDT

He Stole The Scream, Hid It in Living Room Table

Ex-soccer player Pal Enger, who pulled off 1994 heist on opening day of Winter Olympics, dies at 57

(Newser) - Pal Enger, a talented Norwegian soccer player turned celebrity art thief who pulled off the sensational 1994 heist of Edvard Munch's famed The Scream painting from the National Gallery in Oslo, has died. He was 57. Tina Wulf, press officer at Valerenga Fotball, an acclaimed Oslo soccer club for...

A Sex Tape, Threats, and Dorothy's Ruby Slippers

Second man busted for theft of iconic 'Wizard of Oz' prop, with some eyebrow-raising details

(Newser) - A second man has been charged in connection with the 2005 theft of a pair of ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore in The Wizard of Oz, according to an indictment made public Sunday.
  • The theft: The slippers, adorned with sequins and glass beads, were stolen from the Judy Garland
...

Suspect Held in Theft of Dog That Owner Tried to Save

Los Angeles police are still looking for Ali Zacharias' French bulldog

(Newser) - Los Angeles police have made an arrest in the theft of a French bulldog its owner tried to rescue by clinging to the hood of the getaway car. Sadie Slater, 21, of Los Angeles, was booked on suspicion of robbery and jailed Saturday in lieu of $70,000 bail, per...

By Returning What He Stole in 1999, Thief Revealed Himself

He used his credit card to pay to ship the gold-painted weathervane back

(Newser) - A thief returned what he stole more than two decades ago anonymously—but he didn't remain anonymous for long. AFP reports a gold-painted weathervane that sat atop a Catholic cross in southwestern France was taken from its perch in April 1999. Over the years, historian Michel Sabatery wrote about...

In DC, Crackdown on Car Crimes Comes With AirTags

Police in capital teach drivers how to install tracking devices as part of multipronged crime initiative

(Newser) - Jeff Pena contacted his father as soon as he heard that police in Washington, DC, were passing out auto tracking devices to try to stem a sharp increase in carjackings, auto thefts, and other crimes in the nation's capital. "It's just getting crazy out there," says...

One of These 'Mannequins' Is Not Like the Others

Warsaw police nab alleged thief who robbed shopping mall after posing as dummy

(Newser) - Polish cops say they've nabbed an alleged thief who stayed late at shopping malls, at one point concealing himself as a mannequin in a store window. Authorities released a photo of the unnamed 22-year-old standing still, with an outstretched arm holding a shopping bag, in front of a row...

It's Prison for Thief Who Cleaned Out Coin Machines

'This was not pocket change,' prosecutors say

(Newser) - A thief who posed as an employee of a coin-cashing company sent to tend to the machines, only to break into them and take the coin vaults with him, was sentenced Thursday to four years in prison. The US attorney's office for Oregon said Richard Pena repeated the scam...

He Died Chasing Men Who Stole His Laptop. Now, a Verdict

2 convicted on murder, manslaughter charges after 2019 Starbucks robbery led to death of Shuo Zeng

(Newser) - Update: Two men have been convicted in a 2019 laptop robbery at a Bay Area Starbucks that left a research engineer dead. The Mercury News reports a jury on Wednesday found 24-year-old Byron Reed guilty of second-degree murder, and 20-year-old Kejuan Wiggins guilty of voluntary manslaughter, in the Dec. 31,...

The Publishing World Has Been Battling a Truly Bizarre Thief

Someone has been working to access manuscripts for years, but not for profit

(Newser) - Reeves Wiedeman has spent years trying to unravel a literary-world mystery, and his lengthy recap of his digging for New York Magazine is confounding at times. As is the mystery. In simplest terms, for the past four years someone has been using somewhat sophisticated measures to try to steal book...

He Could've Called the Cops After She Stole His Dog. Instead, Rehab

Canadian man arranged for drug addict to be placed in rehab after she swiped Chinese shar-pei

(Newser) - Last month, Brayden Morton put up a frantic message on Facebook. "Please share and help me," he pleaded in a June 18 post . "A blue older model Ford truck just pulled up behind my house and took Darla." Darla is Morton's 3-year-old Chinese shar-pei, and...

He Had a Winning Scratch-Off. There Was One Problem

Police in Clearwater, Fla., say Herbert McClellan stole the lottery ticket before trying to cash it in

(Newser) - "So much for being lucky at the lottery." That's how the Clearwater Police Department in Florida is describing the unfortunate plight of 27-year-old Herbert McClellan, who's accused of swiping more than a dozen scratch-off lottery tickets from a local Speedway, then trying to cash in a...

Cops: Thief Left Behind Unexpected Clue

His young son, leading police in Germany to make an easy arrest

(Newser) - Police in Germany say they had an easy time tracking down a petty thief—he forgot his own son at the scene of the crime. Bautzen police said the 29-year-old suspect ran off when the $5.65 worth of goods he was trying to steal triggered an alarm at a...

Wanted: This Guy, and 'No, We Are Not Kidding'

California thief made off with $500 from artist, but not his own caricature

(Newser) - A caricature out of California either shows the most confident thief ever, or a very stupid one. Police in Riverside are asking anyone who recognizes the caricature to reach out—"and no, we are not kidding"—after the man pictured robbed the artist of $500 in cash. The...

Homeowner 'Flabbergasted' at Note Porch Thief Left

Hilary Smith 'angry and confused' after Christmas gift swiped off her porch came with 'thank you' letter

(Newser) - What CNN calls a "real-life Grinch" has struck in St. Paul, Minn., leaving a homeowner "quite flabbergasted" and local police proclaiming "bah humbug." WCCO and the Pioneer Press report that Hilary Smith ordered a Christmas gift for her boss via Amazon, and it arrived Wednesday, in...

Thief's Patience Is Worth $13K in Jewelry

Atlanta-area authorities are asking for people's help

(Newser) - A patient thief managed to make off with $13,000 in jewelry from a Costco after it closed, Fox 5 Atlanta reports. Investigators say the man cased the Atlanta-area store Oct 10, came back a few hours later, hid behind a display by the front wall, and waited there for...

Thief Strolls Out of Gallery With $20K Dali Etching

Employee at San Francisco's Dennis Rae Fine Art says it happened in a flash

(Newser) - No dead of night needed for this art heist: A thief sauntered into a San Francisco gallery in the middle of the afternoon, lifted a famous Salvador Dali piece worth $20,000, and walked right back out, all in just over 30 seconds, per KGO . The framed mid-'60s etching...

UK Police Hunting Ross Geller Lookalike

Or is it Russ?

(Newser) - David Schwimmer is not accused of stealing a phone, wallet, and jacket from an English restaurant on Sept. 20, but that is the case for someone who looks an awful lot like him. Blackpool Police are on the lookout for a thief , spotted on CCTV footage with a case of...

German Politician Caught With His Pants Down—Literally

Alexander Gauland's clothes stolen during swim

(Newser) - A far-right politician in Germany is battling some unfavorable press related to two incidents in a week, one rather comical, the other not at all. Alexander Gauland, 77, first drew censure over the weekend for comments addressed to the youth division of the Alternative for Germany party, the country's...

Teen Turned in by Mom After Stealing From Blind Man

The teen posed as an NYPD officer on the subway

(Newser) - A wily 14-year-old boy who posed as a New York City police officer while snatching a legally blind man's wallet in a Manhattan subway station on pretense of helping him was arrested on Sunday. Per the AP , his mother turned the baby-faced youth in to police nearly a week...

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