Have you ever heard of the unsolved heists that still are a mystery? Heists are the pinnacle of high-stakes drama, combining daring execution with thorough planning. While many heists result in the capture of the criminals, some are still unsolved, their perpetrators never apprehended, and the loot never found.
The public is captivated by these unsolved heists not just because of the sheer boldness of the acts but also because of the lingering concerns they raise. These masterminds, who were they? How could they have accomplished such seemingly unachievable tasks? Most interestingly, where are they at this moment?
The answer to such questions may not lie with us, however, we bring you here with the top eight unsolved heists that would blow your mind!
8 Unsolved Heists That Still Are a Mystery
1. The Great Train Robbery
A group of fifteen robbers attacked a train traveling from Glasgow to London on August 8th, 1963, on the Bridego Railway Bridge in Buckinghamshire.
The criminals first manipulated the track signals to stop the train in an isolated area. Then the train conductor was beaten by the criminals, who lacked guns, and fled with more than £2.6 million, which is currently about $61 million in the United States.
They ran away to a hiding place, from where authorities would eventually recover evidence to bring charges against the majority of the gang. However, the money was never found again.
Some of the ringleaders, such as Bruce “Napoleon” Reynolds, who later served as a consultant for the 1988 film “Buster,” and Ronald Arthur “Ronnie” Biggs, who escaped, were sentenced to 30 years in prison. Reynolds also wrote and published a book “The Autobiography of a Thief: The Man Behind The Great Train Robbery” in 1995.
2. The Harry Winston Heist
In 2008, a smash-and-grab robbery occurred at the upscale Harry Winston jewelry store in Paris. Four guys dressed as women broke in, forcing staff and customers into a corner with guns drawn, taking practically all of the jewelry that was on display, and emptying two storage cases in the back.
It was the biggest jewel heist in French history and among the biggest in the world as they quickly fled with over $100 million worth of goods.
The robbers addressed employees by their first names and seemed to have inside knowledge of the store, according to The Guardian, since they knew where allegedly top-secret storage crates were located.
In what the French media labeled the “steal of the century,” eight individuals were taken into custody. According to the BBC, the man thought to be the mastermind, Douadi Yahiaoui, was given a sentence of 15 years in prison; other people got sentences as short as nine months.
A large portion of the stolen goods has never been located, however, police in the Parisian suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis reportedly discovered only $19 million worth of jewelry from the theft hidden in a drain.
3. The Plymouth Mail Truck Robbery
A group of criminals disguised as law enforcement officials and armed with firearms assaulted a mail truck in August 1962 as it was making its way from Plymouth, Massachusetts, to the Federal Reserve Bank in Boston.
The men ran off with $1.5 million in cash, all in bills smaller than $20, and only some of it recorded, thanks to an intricate plan involving fictitious highway workers and traffic delays. At the time, this was the greatest cash theft in history.
The postal workers were placed in the back of the truck, blinded, shackled, and gagged. After a while, one of the men—authorities estimate six of them—took the wheel and drove away, leaving the mailmen inside the truck.
The money was never found again, and the remaining defendants were found not guilty.
4. The Belfast Bank Heist
The Belfast Bank heist is the largest unsolved theft in the history of the UK and Europe. On what appeared to be a typical Sunday evening, two police officers burst into the houses of two bank officials and kidnapped their families.
The workers at the Northern Bank assisted the crooks in getting into high-security vaults because they were afraid for the safety of their loved ones. And a staggering sum of money was stolen, worth a total of £43,339,210 ($53 million) today.
The identity of the culprits is still unknown, but you might be surprised to learn that one of the victims was found guilty of planning this money laundering scheme owing to a lack of proof and the ability of witnesses to deny involvement.
Heist fans are still fascinated by the Belfast Bank Robbery. Heist: The Northern Bank Robbery, a BBC documentary that followed the event 13 years later, debuted in 2021.
5. The Banco Central Heist
One of the most well-known scandals in history is the Banco Central theft. The Guinness Book of World Records once recognized it as the largest bank heist in history. In 2005, a group of career criminals started their own landscaping business. Under this pretext, they excavated a 256-foot tunnel that led directly to the Banco Central.
They were able to breach the vault floor and take with them £59,396,470 ($71.6 million) in real currency. Recovering just £16,730,200 ($20 million), only eight persons have been found guilty to date, making this one of the largest unsolved thefts in contemporary history.
6. The Antwerp Diamond Heist
Since the Antwerp Diamond Center is widely known as the global center for diamond trading, “The School of Turin,” an organized crime group, made it their top target. The gang breached a multi-layered security-protected underground vault in 2004.
They were able to deceive aluminum to fool magnetic sensors, among other things. In total, about £83,624,000 ($100 million) worth of diamonds are allegedly still missing, according to police sources.
When you thought there was no more suspenseful part to this robbery, the infamous ringleader was found guilty for his role at Antwerp. He received a 10-year prison sentence, while some of the other members of “The School of Turin” were given 5-year sentences.
The whereabouts of the stolen gems and the identities of the other participants still remain a mystery.
7. D.B. Cooper and a Stolen Plane
D.B. Cooper, a crafty air pirate, skyjacked Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 in November 1971 as it was traveling from Portland, Oregon, to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Cooper informed a flight attendant he had explosive devices around thirty minutes after takeoff, and upon landing at Sea-Tac, he requested $200,000, four parachutes, and a refueling truck.
As it happened, Cooper’s demands were fulfilled once the plane touched down, and he released the passengers before taking off for Mexico City with the pilot and a few staff members. But Cooper had no intention of finishing the trip. Thirty minutes after takeoff from Sea-Tac, he strapped on a parachute and leaped out of the plane into the night from 10,000 feet in the air.
The identity of D.B. Cooper remains unknown to this day, and the FBI has been investigating thousands of potential suspects in the nation’s sole unsolved skyjacking case.
8. The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Robbery in Boston
Two men posing as police officers entered the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston on March 18th, 1990, and informed the security officer that they were there in response to a call. Once inside, they handcuffed the first guard and another, and after the guard allowed them in, they confined them in the basement.
They managed to escape with thirteen extremely valuable pieces of art worth $500 million including “Chez Tortoni” by Edouard Manet (1878–1880), and Rembrandt’s “Storm on the Sea of Galilee” (1633), “A Lady and Gentleman in “Black” (1633), and a self-portrait from 1634. Vermeer’s “The Concert” (1658–1660), Govaert Flinck’s “Landscape with an Obelisk” (1638); and five works by Edgar Degas.
Nobody is aware of the identity of the thieves or the location of their hideout as a result of the biggest theft of private property in recorded history. In the museum, empty frames serve as stand-ins until the stolen artwork is restored.
A $5 million prize from the Gardner Museum is being offered for information that results in the recovery of these paintings in good condition.
Conclusion
As mentioned above too, unsolved heists are fascinating because they combine timeless mystery with real-life drama. Every case is an example of a rare combination of criminal creativity, audacity, and good fortune that combine to create captivating tales that live on long after the real events have passed into history.
These thefts continue to go unsolved, their looted riches remain concealed, and the identities of their masterminds are frequently unknown despite advancements in forensic science and technology. They stand as a testament to the extent people would go to pursue the pleasure of eluding the law and the prospect of wealth.
These unsolved cases continue to serve as a source of inspiration for upcoming generations of investigators and amateur detectives who are all eager to find the missing piece of the puzzle.
