David Ghantt worked as a vault supervisor for the armoured cash vehicles at the Charlotte, North Carolina branch of Loomis, Fargo & Co. Ironically even though he worked for a company that moved millions of dollars every day, he was relatively underpaid. He was insecure. Ghantt has never explained where that money went. He had stayed in a luxury hotel and paid for expensive food and activities such as scuba diving and parasailing. They left behind the cash they couldnt fit in their cars. ", After successfully tracing Ghantt's phone call, FBI agents coordinated with Mexican police to arrest Ghantt on March 1, 1998, at Playa del Carmen, a city near Cancun. However, the FBI knew immediately who robbed the vault (Ghant was seen on video camera), and it didnt take long for the FBI to loop in Kelly Campbell. Its about the 1997 Loomis Fargo robbery also known as the hillbillly heist the second largest cash robbery in the history of the United States. Masterminds | On-set visit with Zach Galifianakis 'David Ghantt' A: I'm in dire need for some RO's barbecue and some Tony's Ice Cream. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LCR9zyGkbo. Before he decided to steal $17 million from the bank, Ghantt had worked for years as a relatively taciturn and compliant employee. All but one of the indicted pleaded guilty. 43-year-old Margret and her mother both died in 2012 . And drastic it was. The former star . LRM Exclusive Interview: David Ghantt, Real Life Thief Who Inspired Looking back at the Loomis heist - Gaston Gazette We would like to show you a description here but the site won't allow us. [citation needed], The defendants were the targets of many barbed jokes in Charlotte and across the country, in part because of their extravagant spending. The details of the heist itself, coupled with the missteps the crew made after stealing the money, attracted the attention of writers and movie producers. Eventually, Ghantt called in from Mexico, seeking more money, and the FBI officially recognized Chambers as a co-conspirator. I was working all the time and unhappy I felt cornered and one day the joking in the break room about robbing the place suddenly didnt seem so far-fetched.. Will California Save the Iconic Joshua Tree? Masterminds (2016) - Zach Galifianakis as David Ghantt - IMDb I wanted to make a drastic change and I went for it, Ghantt remembered later to the Gaston Gazette. Guess what? I didnt even know about it and overlooked it, he said. He and his wife,. David Ghantt normally came home between 6 and 8 p.m., and often he was late, his wife said. 20 years ago,on the night ofOctober 4, 1997, David Scott Ghantt loaded $17.3 million of cash from the bank vault in Charlotte, North Carolina he was employed to supervise into a van. How Did David Ghantt, Kelly Campbell, Steve Chambers Steal More Than She had previously been making frequent small deposits to avert suspicion. If you're trying to make yourself better today, that's all most people care about. ', He explained the glorification and glamour often associated with bank heists and bank robberies in Hollywood films is far from reality. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. But after one visit, she asked a teller "How much can I deposit before you have to report it to the feds?" While Ghantt spent more than 6 1/2 years in federal prison, he said he usedthat time to"re-invent" himself. Then Michele made a trip to the bank. He also took various measures to change his appearance, such as shaving, after a patron at a restaurant pointed out to him that he "looked like the man who robbed a bank of $20 million. Get the latest articles and test prep tips! Just the ability to come and go as I please and walk barefooted in the backyard means so much. Holding her hands behind her back, Michele Chambers was sentenced Tuesday to seven years and eight months in prison for her role in the $17 million heist from Loomis, Fargo & Co. She was also ordered to pay $4.8 million in restitution.It was the fourth-most severe sentence given in the case, which has 21 defendants. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Youre better at planning bank heists than David Ghantt. Across the border in Mexico, Ghantt was also living it up. Its heavy. Campbell knew theyd need the help of the warehouses vault supervisor, who just happened to have a crush on her, and she called Ghantt to ask for his help. All rights reserved. After a Gulf War stint in the Army, David got married in 1992. Wyatt Redd is a freelance writer from Nashville, Tennessee. Q: North Carolina native Zach Galifianakis portrayed you in "Masterminds." 'When you have money, you just have different problems': The Loomis The Loomis Fargo heist became something of a media lightning rod. Chambers wife, Michelle, bought a minivan in cash and began taking frequent trips to the bank to make deposits. From there, the money was moved from the company vehicle to private vehicles. Day in and day out, he drives an armored vehicle,. Theyre meant to be trailer-park trash, but they come off as character experiments on a bad night at the Groundlings. After loading the massive cache of loot into the armored truck, Ghantt set the time lock on the vault, which locked the door for days unless the employees drilled through the lock. Prosecutors also resisted Culler's efforts to downplay Michele Chambers' role in the theft. Galifianakis will play the armored car driver, David, who evades authorities, will be searching for his co-conspirators who betrayed him, Kelly (Kristen Wiig) and Steve (Owen Wilson). Q: You say your time in federal prison changed you. A lot of people ask me, Oh, do you have any regrets? No, not really. Then, keeping with the plan, Ghantt took $50,000 (the maximum that could by law be taken across the border without further authorization) with him and left for Mexico, winding up at the popular Yucatan Peninsula resort-island of Cozumel. Kelly Campbell is scheduled to be sentenced in October. American Couple Who Disappeared in Greece Found Dead For the New York State assemblyman, see. Chambers would hold on to most of the remaining cash and wire it to Ghantt as needed. Together with his wife, Chambers bought a new luxury home (upgrading from his mobile home), a BMW Z3, and some extravagant furnishings. What ACT target score should you be aiming for? $17.3 million in cash was robbed from the Charlotte, North Carolina, regional office vault of Loomis, Fargo & Co. on the evening of October 4, 1997. 20 Years Later: 'Masterminds' of One of the Largest Bank Heists in U.S The painful part is that when you get caught, that the part of your brain that was trying to talk to you when you first started the robbery was right, and that's like a dump truck running over you. Whisler told the judge that the couple had searched for a new house before the theft, and that Michele Chambers bought rubber bands from Wal-Mart to count the money the night of the crime. He was the only employee unaccounted for the next morning, and videotapes recovered at the Loomis Fargo Charlotte office showed Ghantt removing "cubes of cash" and loading it into a Loomis Fargo armored van for over an hour. My name is David Scott Ghantt. No rift here! Chambers also promised to join Ghantt in Mexico as soon as she could, but she admitted to Super Heists she never had any intention of actually making the trip. They got to work planning the straightforward heist that would rely on Ghantts existing access to the vault, fewer staff at the warehouse on the weekends, and the ability to use one of the companys armored trucks to make the successful getaway. ``There are many people with those factors who don't resort to crime,' he said. He completed his prison sentence in November 2006. I'll take the live one. David Bragg . That usually takes the shine right off of it, when you start explaining that. He continued, Youd be wearing a lot of khaki brown and eating crappy food., Since the films release and its recent Netflix debut, Scott Ghent cited that the most common question he receives is about the missing $2 million never recovered by the FBI; Ive had people actually ask me that question. You'd be amazed at how much stress you can relieve yourself from in your life by just taking 20 or so minutes a day for yourself and just letting the world go. Federal Judge Graham Mullen sentenced her to between those lengths. I knew that if we could stay off the radar for about a year, we could basically live a vacation life, Ghantt said. Then check out another bank robber who inspired a movie, John Wojtowicz. Jared Hess directed Masterminds, and god bless the guy, but if Gentlemen Broncos and Nacho Libre were not proof enough that Napoleon Dynamite was a fluke, Masterminds should seal the deal. Parishioners filled the pews for a memorial mass held for Bishop David O'Connell Wednesday night at the St. John Vianney Catholic Church in Hacienda Heights. (His wife tells him to change that word to "selfish."). A: Zach and I have a runningtext conversation going, but he's very busy. 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. Collections. David Ghantt was portrayed by Zackary Hatfield. Separating the Red and Blue. David Ghantt : I had a hard time liftin' it up. Some people screw up big like you, some people screw up small.". Question: Which do you regret more, stealing the money or getting caught? This article will teach you more about the SAT subject tests. 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. Steven Chambers, left, and David Scott Ghantt leave federal court. David GhanttRetweeted Iraqveteran8888 @Iraqveteran8888 Dec 9, 2022 Elect me President and I'll fire everyone, free Julian Assange, and pardon Edward Snowden. Also charged were several innocent relatives that the robbers had enlisted to help get safety deposit boxes in various banks. David Ghantt | World Record Holder and Mastermind A Comprehensive Guide. Michele Chambers' sentence was two months longer than that given to David Scott Ghantt, the Loomis employee who removed the money from the company vault on Oct. 4, 1997. The plan went off with few problems, but after Ghantt was safely in Mexico, his partners were left storing large amounts of cash. What Happened to Steve Chambers After Prison Fitness Center? ``I wish she'd gotten less. 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. All of the defendants except for one pleaded guilty and accepted their sentences. Philosophically, now looking back I wouldnt be who I am now if I hadnt gone through all that, said David Scott Ghantt in an interview with the Observer. Chambers was always considered the "mastermind" behind the theft, but he doesn't talkmuch about his Loomis heist days, not even when actor Owen Wilson portrayed him in the 2016comedy about the heist titled"Masterminds.". If I hadnt of done that, Id probably still be in North Carolina and I would not have got to meet a lot of the interesting people that Ive got to meet. Naturally, Ghantt started to run out of cash and turned to Chambers, who was annoyed by his requests for more money. ``I'm glad she didn't get nine years,' said Sandra Floyd, her mother. I stole $17 million, and Zach Galifianakis played me in a movie. I learned that I was an a--hole. David Scott Ghantt was the vault supervisor at the regional branch of Loomis, Fargo & Co. in Charlotte, North Carolina. David Ghantt (@DavidGhantt) / Twitter As Predators' David Poile braces for retirement, wife reveals love story To find out more about how the thieves got caught and how long they landed behind bars, tune in the Super Heists on CNBC on Monday at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Inside the truck, they found Ghantt's ring and surmised this was a sign of Ghantt's intention to end his relationship with his wife. Ghantt and his compatriots, it turns out, had underestimated how bulky money is. The next day, Steve and Michelle Chambers, Kelly Campbell, and four others were arrested.[6]. You can't get barbecue slaw in this hedonistic state (Florida), and there's nowhere to get real ice cream here like Tony's. In spite of Chambers assurance that the money was, you know, totally not illegally acquired, the teller remained suspicious, especially because the stacks of cash still had Loomis Fargo wrappers on them. A: When I first got in, I thought, "What in my life has led me to this?" Campbell and Chambers made themselves easy to catch, what with their lavish spending. (I) bought jewelry, bought a van, Campbell recalled of her own spending. With a cast like this, and Emily Spivey (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Up All Night) as part of the writing team, Masterminds shouldnt be nearly as obnoxious and dull as it is, but nothing ever clicks. A: I like the 47-year-old David Ghantt more than I did the 20-something David Ghantt. I realized a lot of things that were wrong with me as a person. 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. The FBI investigation was aided by the gang's extravagant spending. SAT is a registered trademark of the College Entrance Examination BoardTM. Now, here we are, two years later. Even though they drove away with less than they had initially intended, they still had more than $17 million in hand. Creative Insights. But even though he worked for a company that regularly moved millions of dollars, David Ghantt himself was underpaid. Thirteen friends and family members were also charged with money laundering, as they had helped Ghantt, Chambers, Campbell, and the others deposit money illegally. We were in Old Fortwhen they were shooting the movie and went out to eat. Said Ghantt, one day life kinda slapped me in the face. Answer: The painful one is getting caught. Finally, in March 1998, the FBI traced a call from Ghantts phone and he was arrested in Mexico. Lindy Hop: The Dance That Defined The Golden Age of Jazz, Inside The Unsolved Disappearance Of Jennifer Kesse, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch, David Ghantt attends the 2016 after party for the Hollywood premiere of. He was angry a lot. At the time it was the second largest cash robbery ever to happen on US soil. From the beginning, the FBIs prime suspect was David Ghantt. All but one of the defendants pleaded guilty. Learning about US history? When Seymour Hersh Strained to Keep Up With CounterPunch, Nichole Stephens, Administrative Assistant. 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. In fact, David Ghantt was about to commit the heist of a lifetime. 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. The defense has finished its closing argument in the murder trial of Alex Murdaugh. Ask questions; get answers. 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 problem with the movie, however, is that the talented cast had no idea what the hell they were trying to do. Chambers promised to wire him money in Mexico until the investigation blew over and Ghantt could return to North Carolina. Lorsque vous utilisez nos sites et applications, nous utilisons des, authentifier les utilisateurs, appliquer des mesures de scurit, empcher les spams et les abus; et. [7][8], Rocket Science, a 1998 double-disc album by Charlotte-based radio personalities John Boy & Billy, includes a track ("Marvin: The Loomis Caper") mocking the defendants. David Ghantt discovers the true meaning of adventure far beyond his wildest dreams. The missing couple were identified as David Harrison Robinson and his wife Lucretia Robinson. Authorities began to hone in on the group and put a wire tap on Campbell's phones. {{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}, {{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}, Nebraska cheerleader competes by herself at state competition, but crowd doesn't let her feel alone, Police identify victim who died Wednesday in Greensboro's 11th homicide of 2023, William Sturkey: Chapel Hill trustees 'hellbent' on winning campus culture wars, Rob Schofield: North Carolinas chronic public employee shortage wasnt an accident, KFC is bringing back a fan favorite after a nearly 10-year hiatus, Richard Groves: What the 'He Gets Us' media campaign says about the decline of Christianity, Two Things: Victim's family not surprised by no show; hospital wars in Greensboro and money well spent, Mark Elliott and Jeremy Rinker: Budget reductions at UNCG punish it for serving disadvantaged students, Samet: Guilford County wanted more black-owned businesses added to construction project after the bids were opened, Former Page High School teacher arrested on child sex charges, records show, Proposed rules for Airbnb, other short-term rentals advance in Greensboro, 'A bizarre case': Greensboro TikTok star found not guilty in fatal 2019 crash, Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist proposes community hospital in Greensboro, Greensboro police officer involved in confrontation on Golden Gate Drive resigns, Jaydon Young's lessons of sacrifice mix with two-hour transfer, Virginia Tech and 2023 tournament. Officers responded just after 5 a.m. Wednesday to an area near the intersection of Martin Luther King Drive and Carolyn Coleman Way and found , "The Wall Street Journal just so happened to have a supportive op-ed ready to publish within hours of the meeting. Masterminds - Zach Galifianakis 'David Ghantt' [On-Set Interview]SUBSCRIBE HERE: http://goo.gl/SrrTlTSUBSCRIBE MOVIE TRAILERS: http://goo.gl/8WxGeDA night gu. But there was just one thing the group hadnt been counting on: the massive weight of that amount of cash. Wij, Yahoo, maken deel uit van de Yahoo-merkenfamilie. David Bowie 's widow recently took to Instagram to post selfies, while promoting both her makeup brand and fashion line. 33. After meeting up with Chambers, Campbell, and some other co-conspirators, Ghantt hightailed it to Mexico with $50,000 in cash in his car. In 2020, the television show Super Heists portrayed the heist in Episode 3, "Van Full of Dollars". Ask below and we'll reply! Investigators also found Ghantt's pickup truck, abandoned at the warehouse. Follow him on twitter: @MSainat1, 20 Years Later: Masterminds of One of the Largest Bank Heists in U.S. History, The CIAs Changing Take on the Climate Emergency, Emancipation, Hollywoods Best Civil War Film Ever. AI Chatbots are Even Scarier Than You Think, DeSantiss Educational Policies Come Right Out of the Fascist Playbook, Erase the Memory to Erase a People? During the next few months they bought a BMW-Z3 roadster and tens of thousands of dollars in antiques, furniture and decorations. But last Oct. 4, when he still hadn't gotten home by 2:30 a.m., she called his parents in. 25th anniversary of the incredible Loomis Fargo bank heist | wcnc.com While she made small deposits at first, she became more reckless, eventually making a deposit of thousands of dollars in cash, telling the teller not to worry: Its not drug money.. You can reach Kevin Ellis at 704-869-1823 or www.Twitter.com/TheGazetteKevin. Until it's gone, you don't appreciate it. We caught up with David Ghantt about - The Gaston Gazette | Facebook Once Ghantt loaded the large haul from the vaultwhich could have been close to $20 millioninto a truck, he planned to drive to a second location, then head straight to the airport and fly to Mexico. On March 12, a Charlotte grand jury indicted the eight co-conspirators for bank larceny and money laundering; the latter offense was included because of how they spent the stolen money. In November 1990, David married Margaret in San Diego, California. Unfortunately, he failed to disable the third camera. [3][4] Its Charlotte office would be the victim of David Scott Ghantt and his confederates later that year. Authorities say Steve. He made his own self miserable. This Wednesday marks the 20th anniversary of the notorious Loomis Fargo heist. Then you end up in a eight by ten cube and youre going to share that cube with two other people. My name is David Scott Ghantt. I stole $17 million, and Zach - reddit I really don't miss that guy. The judge said he doubted she would be able to pay the $4.8 million restitution, but said federal law required him to impose it. During the hearing, Culler recounted his client's difficult personal life: her parents' divorce when she was 2 or 3 years old; a teenage stay in a Baptist Children's home; a teenage pregnancy; and various medical conditions. He then proceeded to load about $17.3 million in cash (approximately $11 million of which was in $20 bills) into the back of a company van. 29 David Ghantt Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images. When I interviewed for this job about three years ago, I told (my boss) that I had some dirt in my background, and if he went digging for it, he would find it. The plan to rob Loomis Fargo was spawned by Campbell and her friend Steve Chambers, during a casual bonfire at Chambers home. So he hatched a plan to rob his employers. [1] Tips had led the FBI to begin monitoring Chambers's (and his wife's) activities, but it was not until the FBI recorded a phone call from Ghantt in Mexico that the final connection was made. CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS FROM MASTERMIND MOVIE. After this look at David Ghantt and the Loomis Fargo heist, read about a more successful robbery, the Antwerp diamond heist. Project #ShowUs. Eventually, Ghantt would return to the United States and the full sum would be split up between the conspirators. 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. 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. An FBI criminal investigation ultimately resulted in the arrest and conviction of eight people directly involved in the heist, as well as sixteen others who had indirectly helped them, and the recovery of approximately 88% of the stolen money. One day, Campbell was speaking to an old friend named Steve Chambers. Fact check: Is there much truth to the new 'Masterminds' movie In total, 24 people were convicted. In addition to his phone calls with Ghantt, Chambers began extravagantly spending the money, even though the co-conspirators had agreed to lay low for a year or two. dvelopper et amliorer nos produits et services. The FBI knew they needed to make their move. 4 million images and real time event coverage from coast to coast , ImageCollect is the only celebrity photo site you'll ever need. Loomis Fargo employees could not open the vault the next morning and called the police. Nine other relatives and friends were also charged with money laundering, as they had co-signed for safe deposit boxes used to store some of the money; prosecutors opted to charge them on the grounds that they should have known the money was obtained illegally. Now looking back, with the life I have now, Ive got a great family, got a great kid. Victoria Beckham's Family Including Brooklyn and Wife Nicola Si vous souhaitez personnaliser vos choix, cliquez sur Grer les paramtres de confidentialit. 'Masterminds' Review - The Hollywood Reporter You've decided to give up on a part of your life. Investigators considered Ghantt to be the prime suspect almost from the beginning. ``None of these defendants , in this court's opinion, are capable of making substantial restitution, no matter what they do, or no matter what they try,' Mullen said. A former co-worker told me, "Everybody has screwed up. The scary one is stealing the money. 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