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. real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist (No Ratings Yet) . When I put that cash in the back of the car, by the time I got to the office the whole car smelled like that. After a couple of weeks, Ghantt and the rest of the heist team were ready to strike. (John D. Simmons/The Charlotte Observer via AP), Baltimore to Pay $6M in Latest Police Misconduct Settlement, Australia Family Hurt in Helicopter Crash Suing Vegas Firm, Massachusetts Governor Unveils Proposed $55.5B State Budget. Federal law stops government collection efforts 20 years after a defendant leaves prison. Its in the ether. Without really intending to, Kelly recalls, she turned the conversation to the possibility of a heist. His new life in Mexico had begun. Three weeks later, the couple purchased, in cash, a $635,000 stone mansion. He had since served time in prison for the crime and told our sister station WSOC-TV Channel 9s Glenn Counts he learned a valuable lesson while behind bars. Twelve hours later, at 6 that evening, Eric Payne drove a rented Budget van to his workplace, a graphics company on Performance Road in western Mecklenburg County called Reynolds & Reynolds, which was closed for the night and had a secluded parking lot where they intended to transfer the cash. On Oct. 5, the Loomis heist celebrates its 25th birthday. 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. You can garnish wages. Steve Chambers and his wife (Mary Elizabeth Ellis) were a little more difficult to connect to the heist. "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. Thatd probably been the best thing for me to do, really. Ghantt had fled to Mexico with $50,000 in cash, leaving the rest of the money with Steve Chambers. David, now 30, says he's sorry he abandoned his wife--who he says still loves him--and his family. His collection case, which closes in November 2026, got credit for the couples $540,000 house on Cramer Mountain in Gaston County, Butcher says. Kelly had no problem fanning the flames of their old flirtation. I ride motorcycles and fish -- normal guy, Ghantt told Counts. Soon thereafter, he met Kelly Campbell, a co-worker at Loomis Fargo. Everybody seemed stunned. But as soon as he drove off, I went right back in and opened the vault. It, too, has changed hands several times. But the idea of all that money pulled at her. I thought, Okay, if I get out of that bubble because the cops depend on that, even the feds my chances to get away go way up.. But what the bank didnt tell Michelle, and Michelle didnt know, was that one of those forms get filled out if you ask about it, or if its close to $10,000 or if they suspect that any part of that transaction is suspicious, Wydra said. 2022 marks the 25th anniversary of the year that everything happened 1997. Mine did. It just happened to fall on my desk.. Almost 19 years after Ghantt and a group of friends from Gaston County pulled off one of the largest cash heists in U.S. history, the movie "Masterminds" will play up the caper for laughs. Paying the money back has taken a lot longer, and time is running out for the U.S. government to collect. He recalled that another agent, Phil King, said, "Hey, there was an article in the [Charlotte] Observer about beeper codes. The FBI now knew Chambers had Loomis cash. It was released in 2016 and Wydra was invited to the premiere. The Loomis defendants face no additional legal jeopardy for not paying off their debts. The figures can be astounding. "He showed me a lot of money," McKinney said. Since Ghantt was the supervisor, he sent his co-worker home first. Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers, carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4, 1997. "She just called me up on the phone and said, 'Hey, let's meet one day after work.' Temptation to do something that you think you normally wouldnt do can change a lot of minds when its that kind of cash, and thats what it was., (WATCH BELOW: VIDEO: The Loomis Fargo heist: 25 years later). "We had David Ghantt and Kelly Campbell tied together, and we had Steven Chambers and Eric Payne with unexplained wealth, but we didn't have a tie between them," Agent John Wydra said. At the party, Steve invited Michele's stepfather, truck driver Dennis Floyd, to the basement to play pool. Her sentence was delayed until Jan. 1 so she could spend the holidays with her family. Or does it sit in an offshore account, waiting for a prison sentence to end? In early December, Steve and Michele invited relatives to their daughter's sixth birthday party. But as he later recalled to the media, as soon as he stepped through those big-box doors, he realized he was flush with cash, and he didnt need to shop at Walmart ever again. I didn't think I had the guts. Puedes cambiar tus opciones en cualquier momento desde tus controles de privacidad. "I said, 'I don't want him killed.' She could visit friends. It took me going to prison to realize I was a bag of worms, and it took me years of work to be somebody worthy to come back into our society, he said. Charlotte Magazine even ran a feature story about the Loomis Fargo heist with the title, White Trash Crime. The headlines, however, never bothered Ghantt. Youre supposed to get less time for cooperating, a lesser penalty, and instead, you see what she got hit with. Gronquist said. Jim Gronquist, Campbells defense attorney during the Loomis case, says the financial penalties levied against his client and her co-defendants are grossly excessive and unjust, particularly since most of the stolen Loomis money was actually recovered. And going to see the Mayan ruins. So that was kind of like this once-in-a-lifetime thing, Wydra said. For example, Steve Chambers and his wife were living in a trailer and upgraded to what would today be a multi-million-dollar mansion at Cramer Mountain. Michelle Chambers paid off only $27,000. And it turned Steve into he thought he was Don Corleone all of a sudden.. ". "It wasn't me, it was Steve," she says she told him. The number of people involved had ballooned after Steve started asking friends and family to help him launder the stolen cash. On Feb. 27, agents listened in on a call from David to Kelly and learned David's location in Mexico. He has a regular life now, but 25 years ago, Ghantt was the mastermind behind the third-largest bank robbery in U.S. history. The plan to rob Loomis Fargo was spawned by Campbell and her friend Steve Chambers, during a casual bonfire at Chambers' home. You might as well go all the way now.". They found Ghantts truck, and in it were his keys, some personal items and his wedding ring. Meanwhile, Steve was keeping a close eye on Kelly. Ghantt, his former co-worker Kelly Campbell and her friends Steve and Michelle Chambers carried out the Loomis Fargo heist on Oct. 4, 1997. We spoke with the inside man, David Ghantt, to get the real story. In the meantime, however, Chambers not only refused to wire money to Ghantt in Mexico, but ultimately hired a hitman (Jason Sudeikis) to take him out. Her case closes in 2025. David, the international fugitive, lived it up, too--for a while. They assumed that whoever was involved would keep the cash in a safe place, like a safe deposit box. Although David was in on most of the planning, one discussion between Steve and Kelly was kept a secret. "I wanted to be more like my mom and dad were.". . And to me, if it pisses them off, Im all for it.. I learned something that was valuable at the time: Most criminals never leave a 250, maybe 300-mile circle from their home base. Besides her prison sentence, Campbell must undergo mental health and drug treatment and spend two years in a supervised release program. Theres some things I want to do., Ghantt planned on traveling from Mexico to the Cayman Islands, bypassing customs along the way. 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. 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. 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. All of the defendants are out of prison -- the longest sentence was 11 years. kellis@gastongazette.com 0:04 1:38 On Oct. 4, 1997, former Kings Mountain resident David Scott Ghantt finished his shift as a vault supervisor for Loomis Fargo in Charlotte. You can have your whole career and not have a case like that. They put up mauve wallpaper. Or as he tells me, How many people in the United States havent thought about robbing a bank? Then another. The modern company was formed in 1997 by the consolidation of two armoured security concerns, Wells Fargo Armored Service and Loomis Armored Inc. Their international network covers over 200 operating locations in the US and eleven western European countries. What made her do it? Now he offered to pay him to carry cash to David--Steve said he was a friend hiding out after a bad drug deal, McKinney recalled. The cart held about $2 million, and the thief made multiple trips. A report by the General Accounting Office found that as of budget year 2016, $110 billion in restitution ordered by the federal courts was outstanding and that more than 90% of the amount had been classified as uncollectible.. I mean, cause greed is a funny animal. They didnt expect it.. The next day Chambers, Campbell and few other conspirators were arrested as well. Now that Kelly believes she has found Jesus, she has become more analytical about her past. She could spend time with her children and parents. Its hilarious. The picture, which is directed by Jared Hess and written by Chris Bowman, Hubbel Palmer, and Emily Spivey, stars Zach Galifianakis, Owen Wilson, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Jason Sudeikis . And with Loomis, were looking at only one case. Ghantt was the vault manager and was surrounded. For his part, Ghantt was now officially on his way to Mexico, his future stretched out before him. The FBI continues to search for a missing $2 million from the theft. Called Masterminds, the 2016 film stars Zach Galifianakis, Kristen Wiig and Owen Wilson. Some of that money is just gone. Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. In 2017, for example, Paul Burks of Lexington was ordered to pay $244 million to the victims of his worldwide Ponzi scheme, Zeek Rewards. Or is the loot buried in somebody's yard? On his way out, he grabbed the surveillance video, hoping to cover his tracks. That week, the FBI designated the theft its 142nd "major case," putting it on a list--begun in the 1970s--that includes such other infamous crimes as the World Trade Center bombing. Only a nickel on every dollar have been collected so far. Ghantt, meanwhile, was losing his patience and starting to make threats. ". It didnt take the local police long to put the pieces together. 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. Jim Gronquist was Campbells defense attorney. Together, they drove in a convoy to an industrial warehouse eight miles away, where Eric Payne, a fourth accomplice was. "As soon as you start, you realize there's no going back," David recalled. His mobile home was nicely furnished, on eight acres with a stream in the back. In early September 1997, Kelly found herself chatting on the phone with a friend who still worked at Loomis, a 27-year-old man who, despite being married, had made no secret of the fact that he had a crush on her. The towns booming construction industry attracts workers from around the country. More agents waited outside to arrest them. The principals here are David Ghantt, a driver for Loomis, Fargo and Co.; Kelly Campbell, the woman Ghantt had a crush on, and who convinced him to commit the crime; and Steve and Michele Chambers. When he finished, the van was filled with $17 million. 1997 Harley-Davidson Road King motorcycle for sale at auction of items bought after Loomis, Fargo armored car facility heist by Steven Chambers, wife Michele, Kelly Jane Campbell & David Scott Ghanntt (Photo by Will And Deni McIntyre/Getty Images) Working together, they got the gate open, then drove in a caravan to the Reynolds & Reynolds parking lot. Kelly Campbell arrested 11) Finally, the FBI successfully tracked down Ghantt and arrested him at Playa del Carmen. "It probably should bother me," he said. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Given the presence of the surveillance tapes and a gun belonging to Ghantt, they started with Ghantts phone and pager records and discovered a pattern they attributed to an accomplice. Hes very articulate. 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. But he tried to keep his face averted, so David wouldn't be able to ID him. Two more defendants in the $17 million Loomis Fargo & Co. robbery last year have agreed to plead guilty, and a third person entered a formal plea in court. Not all of them, but some of them are going to forgive you, theyre going to overlook it., he said. . Baltimore leaders have agreed to pay a $6 million settlement to the family of a driver who was killed during a 2010 police chase involving Gun Trace Task Force officers, Four family members from Australia who were injured during a crash-landing of a sightseeing helicopter in December are suing a Las Vegas-based tour operator, Massachusetts Gov. In the first days after the arrests, agents recovered or accounted for all but about $2 million of the stolen money. On March 1, David Ghantt left his hotel to do some laundry. Kelly had recently left a job driving an armored-car for Loomis, Fargo & Co. "He's the one who brought it up first," said Kelly, a year after her arrest. One number is working in Campbells favor. Steve Chambers has told agents the missing cash was stolen from a shed in Lincoln County. Steve led the planning. He didnt even really question me. 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. . The case had gotten national publicity and was the subject of numerous articles, documentaries and even a movie. He told her he wanted more of "his" cash. >> PHOTOS: The Loomis Fargo heist, 25 years later. I was looking at small sailboats and theyre not cheap, he tells me. She was the group's only contact with David, and she was smoking marijuana "like other people smoke cigarettes," she said. Mexican police, Interpol officers and an FBI agent were watching him. But being the vault supervisor at Loomis Fargo had one perk -- exposure to tons of cash. Michelle, meanwhile, purchased new breasts for herself, along with a $43,000 diamond ring and a new convertible BMW Z3. Not every agent has a case like that, he said. And when everybody else voted to kill me, she voted with them, he explains. He was an old friend from East Gaston High School, tough and sure of himself. 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. Then, on a mid-September day, as he reviewed a credit card bill, David did some math. Search by Name Search . Restitution is a familiar part of sentencing in federal court. Probably very egotistical of me, I thought, Yeah, sure, I can beat them, theyre college smart and thats about it, Ghantt said. So he got in a cab and went to a mall. At the sight of all that money, Scott and Eric had the same thought: They'd made the worst mistake of their lives. A guard at an armored car company in the Southern U.S. organizes one of the biggest bank heists in American history. Though Wydra is retired, 25 years ago, he was an agent with the FBI. For reasons that remain obscure, Robert spilled the beans to David. and "I love money!" She didn't plan to move to Mexico. Hes a family man with a wife and daughter. And I knew that by that time, Id be in Cancun no matter what. 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. 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. But few could have guessed how spectacularly the heist would go wrong after the criminals initially got away with it. Scott, 26, had a larceny conviction as a teenager, but he'd since cleaned up his act and now had a steady job, a daughter and a girlfriend. . 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. His name was Corey. Throughout the multi-year-long case and subsequent trials, journalists often referred to Ghantt and the others as trailer trash and hillbillies. But after she left, she reached back out to Ghantt and brought up what theyd talked about that day in the break room. Scott Grant and Steve pulled up next to her in a Mazda. At 7:45, David had finished loading. Its everything thats coming north.. I dont know if Steve would have done it himself, but he definitely was capable of buying someone to do it for him and I think that was going to happen if we didnt step in and arrest Ghantt, Wydra said. To be brutally honest, it was that morning, Ghantt replied. Some amateur thieves might turn to movies and TV shows for lessons on criminal behavior. Then FBI agent Wydra watched Steve's wife, Michele, deposit about $8,000 at a Gaston County, N.C., bank. David told her he'd need help moving the money, getting a new ID and leaving the country. Agents began picking up signs that David definitely had help: The abandoned Loomis van with $3.3 million in small bills still inside, and phone records showing that somebody beeped him while he stole the money, using David's own cell phone. ', "He asked me if I'd mind holding some money for him. Its a farce that never farces; a comedy without jokes. While Ghantt trusted Chambers enough to leave his cut behind, Chambers had other plans. She later hired someone to kill Ghantt, though the murder never took place. This was in the 1990s the Columbia Airport back then was closed at around 9:30, 10 oclock. There was a little voice in my head that said, 'Don't do it. "Every time my conscience would start bothering me," Kelly recalled, "I'd smoke another joint and forget about it.". Kelly, she says now, was thinking about how happy she would be to send this man far away from her. His collection case closes in two years. He goes, My name is Bruno. 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