Well they were in some sense celebrities, Gronquist said. They found Ghantts truck, and in it were his keys, some personal items and his wedding ring. Kelly Campbell, 29, a former company employee, entered guilty pleas earlier to bank larceny, money laundering and conspiracy to commit murder charges. By then Id figured out that Bruno was up to no good, and that Id probably never seen any more of my money. She could spend time with her children and parents. Based on the October 1997 Loomis Fargo robbery. . Even with several vehicles, they underestimated how much space they would need and they had to leave $3 million behind. But I thought this is me being hard-headed Im going to ride this thing to the ground. And so thats what I did.. It's one of the biggest jokes at the place. "For the first year, they're all over you. In February 1998, the FBI tapped their phones and listened to Steve discuss depositing $2.5 million in the Cayman Islands. None of the suspects had been in any serious trouble before this. Things were spiraling fast. . Then FBI agent Wydra watched Steve's wife, Michele, deposit about $8,000 at a Gaston County, N.C., bank. I flew from Atlanta to New Orleans. But he tried to keep his face averted, so David wouldn't be able to ID him. I made a joke once that was the hardest Id ever worked for Wells Fargo -- yeah, its a lot of work, Ghantt said. So much so that one suspicious neighbor called the FBI. Loomis has received $978,983.79, according to Sally Butcher, an assistant clerk in the federal courts of the Western District of North Carolina who specializes in criminal debt. He took bus tours of Mayan ruins. Many of the lesser players in the conspiracy have been the most effective in paying their debts. Called Masterminds, the 2016 film stars Zach Galifianakis, Kristen Wiig and Owen Wilson. Chambers got 11 years. Probably very egotistical of me, I thought, Yeah, sure, I can beat them, theyre college smart and thats about it, Ghantt said. . By Dustin Rowles | Film | September 30, 2016 |. Steve Chambers and Kelly Campbell, who had been friends on and off since growing up together in the mid-1980s, were at a cookout, playing cards and drinking Budweiser at Steve's Lincoln County, N.C., mobile home, Kelly recalled. I said, It comes down to picking the right day, and the right time of the month, and all that good stuff. I even told her, It wouldnt be all that difficult. The old man me would never survive that, Id have a heart attack.. Jim Gronquist was Campbells defense attorney. Driving away, he said he felt a mix of fear, confidence and excitement that he outsmarted the FBI. Together, they drove in a convoy to an industrial warehouse eight miles away, where Eric Payne, a fourth accomplice was. He says the Loomis case shows how the criminal justice system and the courts treat lower-income people differently. They placed a bust of Caesar in the dining room. And then I could hear her laughing. Michelle Chambers received seven years and eight months, while Steve Chambers was handed an 11-year sentence. Ghantt didn't actually meet Chambers until the night of the heist, though, according to Diamant, who would go on to write a book about it.The reason Ghantt got involved was always the . We need to set up some way for me to get my money. She said, We got it all worked out. At 6 that morning, FBI supervisor Rick Shaffer led 12 agents and several Gaston County police officers up a winding road on Cramer Mountain to Steve's home. Ghantt was caught on videotape loading large amounts of cash into a truck. Twenty-one people were charged and convicted in the robbery, one of the biggest heists in U.S. history. Search Tools . Should David be killed after he gave them the money? David quickly realized he was the intended victim. One of them tapped him on the back. It wasnt a big hit, but Ghantt, who was played by Galifianakis, gives it a rave review. 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. Username. Zach always plays that bumbling kind of lunatic, but hes not, Ghantt says. Like David, Kelly was frustrated with her marriage. Instead of lobster, the man who stole $17 million survived on home-cooked pasta and grilled cheese sandwiches. But in November, money ran low. . And going to see the Mayan ruins. He kept looking over his shoulder. Come for the Chumbawamba, and stay for the return of the Mack. A few of the Loomis restitution cases have already been closed either because the amount was paid in full or because the 20-year clock wound down. Kelly drove her pickup to a lot across the street from the Loomis building, on Suttle Avenue in Charlotte. The FBI's final challenge is finding the remaining $2 million. He gave the rest to Kelly. Theres some things I want to do., Ghantt planned on traveling from Mexico to the Cayman Islands, bypassing customs along the way. "It probably should bother me," he said. In addition to their extravagant spending, Michelle Chambers made the mistake of loudly asking a bank teller how much cash she could deposit in her account without it being reported to the feds, and then said, its not drug money.. And I said, Hey, man, I got this. In early December, Steve and Michele invited relatives to their daughter's sixth birthday party. So the original gang was all totally shocked, Wydra said. "He said, 'Yeah, right,' and turned his head. The pager entry was 1-4-3. Before David left for the airport, he had handed Scott an eight-inch key ring. FBI video shows agents searching the Cramer Mountain home and finding stacks of cash. Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4, 1997. Ghantt and one other employee were the last to leave. I think I always knew that, but lost my way for a while.". The Evergreen State takes the top spot again in the U.S. News Best States ranking on the strength of its tech sector and other industries. Though David had said earlier he thought there was $15 million in the vault, the sight of that much cash held them spellbound. It, too, has changed hands several times. Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers, carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4, 1997. I was looking at small sailboats and theyre not cheap, he tells me. At first, I just blended in with the tourists and picked up a few translation books, Ghantt explains. 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. His collection case closes in two years. So that was kind of like this once-in-a-lifetime thing, Wydra said. 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. When did you conclude Yeah, Im actually going to do this? Counts asked. He hadnt checked ahead of time if the airport had any available flights, let alone if it would even be open. First, in January, he tried to get someone to take some millions down to Mexico. Then we went on a mission to calculate exactly how much size-wise the money was, $11.3 million in $20 bills, and it weighed over 2,000 pounds, Wydra said. Zaron Burnett is an investigative journalist and longform features writer based in Los Angeles. What concerned her was the chance of getting caught. On Nov. 12, a confidential informant told the FBI about Steve Chambers's move from mobile home to mansion. The money was heavy. He learned to parachute. The Chambers, however, didnt fit in with the other members of the gated community. I said, Listen, You all need to get your shit together, or Im just going to walk over here to the government building and tell them who the fuck I am. That lit a little fire under her ass, for a bit.. The property has changed hands several times since then. From my standpoint, it was just a business deal, Ghantt said. The use of this site is restricted to authorized personnel only. "He showed me a lot of money," McKinney said. Some of that money is just gone. Three weeks after the theft, Steve and Michele moved from their Lincoln County mobile home to a $635,000 house in a gated Cramerton, N.C., neighborhood. Dustin is the founder and co-owner of Pajiba. Loomis, then known as Loomis Fargo, experienced two inside jobs in 1997, for $17.3 million and $18.8 million. Ghantt, who by then was long out of prison, served as a consultant. Access to this system is reviewed and violators will be subject to prosecution. "I said, 'I don't want him killed.' About 5:45 a.m., he got into his pickup and began the 45-minute drive to work in Charlotte. Then, I started loading the van., Money, when bound in bulk and stacked in canvas bags, is heavier than you might expect. Steve solicited two others to help move cash during the theft. real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist. He frequently entertained there, buying steaks for his guests. Hed be in contact. She could walk under the trees, with the chickens and goats and dogs that live around her mobile home. "I was trying to figure out a way to [leave my husband] and take care of my kids without having to depend on him or any other man," Kelly said. In the first days after the arrests, agents recovered or accounted for all but about $2 million of the stolen money. He'd stay up all night, boosted by coffee, waiting for the sunrise over the ocean. It changes you. All of the co-defendants were arrested the next day, about six months after the heist. It affects everybody different. Website. She declined to take a lie-detector test. Ultimately, though, the heist wasnt Ghantts idea, which meant he didnt decide who else was involved. The bigger the amount, however, the bigger the damages to victims that likely will never be repaid: Amy Paynes collection account was closed in 2020 with her having paid $53,000 of the $274,000 she owed. Guller was the attorney for Steven Chambers, who came up with the original idea for the Loomis theft. This machine is the property of Loomis. Kelly, she says now, was thinking about how happy she would be to send this man far away from her. Too many questions remained: Where was the cash? "I thought he was goofing around.". The authorities didn't know yet how much was missing from the armored-car company, but Steve did. In the meantime, the FBI was closing in looking to bust a total of 21 suspected accomplices. Reach our Customer Contact Center by calling 877.877.0560 from 6:30 AM to 11:30 PM CT every day or by completing the provided form. Ghantt took $50,000 for himself and fled to Cozumel, Mexico. Given his position at the bank, hed be the one to pull off the robbery, and he intended to be ready. They decorated their 6,000-square-foot stucco house with antiques, paintings and statues, including a six-foot wooden Indian that Michele had bought for $600. That was pretty awesome., It felt like a dream vacation until he started running out of money. What kind of surprised me is how much the car smelled like money, like if you ever hold money up to your nose it has a distinct smell, Wydra said. They sweated, though the night was cool. You see, there's a reason Loomis Fargo used armored cars to move large amounts of cash. I had a four-hour layover there, and then from New Orleans to Cancun.. Heres your money. Then he turns around and leaves., The problem was, it was nowhere near the amount Ghantt had expected: Im looking at it, and theres maybe $8,000. In 2017, for example, Paul Burks of Lexington was ordered to pay $244 million to the victims of his worldwide Ponzi scheme, Zeek Rewards. He approached a longtime friend, Eric Payne, who lived in a mobile home south of Belmont, N.C. Steve offered him $100,000 to help. There was a third person with them, too, a man named Eric Grant. She will never get beyond the debt. I learned something that was valuable at the time: Most criminals never leave a 250, maybe 300-mile circle from their home base. They set the date, Oct. 4, a Saturday when David knew he could be alone in the building after his shift. She could visit friends. Masterminds which opens nationwide today (though youd be hard pressed to know that given the decided lack of promotion) is proof again that all the talent in the world cannot salvage a bad script, and not even a good screenwriter can make up for terrible performances. Time passed, and Campbell eventually quit her job at Loomis Fargo. His wife, Tammy, was as shocked as Loomis officials. These days, the 52-year-old husband and father lives in Jacksonville, Florida, where he works at a heavy equipment rental agency. On Feb. 27, agents listened in on a call from David to Kelly and learned David's location in Mexico. As for his new wife, when the two just started dating, he was nervous about letting her know about his past, but he wanted to be honest. It premiered in Los Angeles on September 26, 2016 and was theatrically released in the . Directed by Jared Hess and written by Chris Bowman, Hubbel Palmer and Emily Spivey, the film stars Zach Galifianakis, Owen Wilson, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones and Jason Sudeikis.. What made her abandon an ordinary existence to commit this spectacular, doomed crime? She just called me up on the phone and said, Hey, lets meet one day after work. And then, we were talking and she says, How do you feel about robbing Loomis Fargo? Ghantt tells me. One number is working in Campbells favor. On the evening of October 4, 1997, one man loaded $17.3 million in cash from the vaults of Loomis, Fargo & Co. into the back of a van. Agents raided safe deposit boxes, where they recovered more than $11 million. Tuesday marked 25 years since a group of buddies pulled off the third-largest money grab in U.S. history -- the Loomis Fargo heist. Masterminds is a 2016 American crime comedy film based on the October 1997 Loomis Fargo robbery in North Carolina. 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. Ghantt would go on to spend six and a half years in federal prison. Scott was so nervous, he said, that he couldn't help. For instance, after stealing $17.3 million $11 million of which was in $20 bills the conspirators had to leave behind $3 million in cash because they couldnt fit all of it in their cars. But on Oct. 4, 1997, that no longer mattered and Ghantt took off with $17.3 million. To celebrate Halloween, about seven of Steve's friends, including Eric Payne and Kelly, gathered for a party at Steve's house. Still, she wasn't happy. Mine did. By the time the month concluded, the couple had purchased a 7,000-square-foot stone mansion in a gated country club community. Masterminds is an atrociously bad comedy, and absolutely everyone is to blame. ALSO READ: Leader of $3M check theft, bank fraud scheme in Charlotte area sentenced to prison, The hillbilly outfit did more that just drop a few breadcrumbs. Puedes cambiar tus opciones en cualquier momento desde tus controles de privacidad. 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. He comes to my door, and hes got a brown paper bag in his hand. "Love" has four. It all went down in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the man at the center of that heist, David Scott Ghantt, now lives in Jacksonville. 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