On his way out, he grabbed the surveillance video, hoping to cover his tracks. But what did that mean? Youre supposed to get less time for cooperating, a lesser penalty, and instead, you see what she got hit with. Gronquist said. In real life: False. She came from a blue-collar background, a high school dropout who had grown tired of working in a mill and gotten an equivalency diploma. The Loomis Fargo Bank Robbery was the $17.3 million cash robbery of the Charlotte, North Carolina, regional office vault of Loomis Fargo & Company on the evening of October 4, 1997, by armored car driver and vault supervisor David Scott Ghantt. Because surprise! They also left behind a life-changing fortune in small bills $3.3 million in fives and ones that they overlooked and the two videotapes that Ghantt had pulled from the security cameras at the bank. For her part, Kelly Campbell spent six years in federal prison. First, in January, he tried to get someone to take some millions down to Mexico. It was one of those things everyone (at Loomis Fargo) joked about, but in time, it became serious. . Then FBI agent Wydra watched Steve's wife, Michele, deposit about $8,000 at a Gaston County, N.C., bank. . But after a year, they'll cut it down to two agents. He had a favorite restaurant, Zandunga, which had a mariachi band each night and a view of the Caribbean. Some of the biggest numbers remaining on the Loomis collection board, as is the case with Campbell, belong to those who played the biggest role in the crime: David Ghantt, the Loomis employee who loaded all that money 2,800 pounds in all into the back of a company van before escaping to Mexico, has paid just under $50,000 of the $3.81 million he was assessed. I pay (restitution to) thousands of people, but its in drips and drabs.. 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. Ghantt: My cut was supposed to be about $5 million, but that's not what I ended up with. Loomis employees drive the very core of our business. No hard feelings. Truth be told, Ghantt had something of a crush on Campbell, and so, he told her exactly how hed pull off such a heist. The platform is designed to engage citizens and government leaders in a discussion about what needs improvement across the country. He said every year he files his taxes and the IRS takes all of his tax return. . "I said, 'That's all they gave me,' " McKinney recalled. He appeared happily matched with his high-spirited wife, Michele, and the two children from her first marriage. Federal prosecutors would ultimately charge 21 defendants in the case, including the Floyds, who were charged with (and pleaded guilty to) money laundering. When we worked together [for Loomis], we'd joke about it. Should David be killed after he gave them the money? More agents waited outside to arrest them. Campbell and her husband had always been just scraping by, however in the weeks following the robbery, the two seemed to have more money than they've ever had. Before long, the FBI had wiretaps on the ringleader, Steve Chambers, and then they waited for the right time to make their arrests. Basically, he needed a score to make his problems go away. Kelly told the FBI she had done drugs with David but denied knowing about the theft. Why do we feel its so necessary to treat people like this, to say, OK, well just ruin the rest of your life because you made a bad decision., Punishment should not last a lifetime. As soon as Corey left, I pretended like I was leaving. So it was weird when during the middle of the week, there were these very clean-cut, very Midwestern looking, obviously American guys in the town. The best states in the U.S. come from coast to coast. 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) Getting restitution, its like pulling teeth.. Hidden in it was a 3 1/2-carat diamond ring that cost $43,000. That October, the Chamberses' bank accounts ballooned. That was the most painful truth to come to. In the first days after the arrests, agents recovered or accounted for all but about $2 million of the stolen money. Next month, Payne will back in the Charlotte federal courthouse, this time to be sentenced from weapons and methamphetamine trafficking charges. In mid-November, McKinney carried $10,000 to Cancun but wound up spending most of it on himself. Question: You went to Mexico. More than half of the amount came from the seizure of a luxury home purchased by husband-and-wife defendants during their post-heist spending spree. Going south, nobody really looks at what youre shipping. The top-ranked pie in North Carolina doesnt look like pie at all. On Monday, October 6th, the FBI agents who were investigating the robbery located the Loomis Fargo van abandoned in the woods. We got to the end of the day, and he was acting like he wanted to linger. He took bus tours of Mayan ruins. One of them tapped him on the back. 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. You're an idiot.'". 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. Except the person he offered $150,000 to mule $2.5 million down to Ghantt in Mexico turned him down and instead went to the FBI. You can reach Kevin Ellis at 704-869-1823 or Twitter.com/TheGazetteKevin. . If they could just sit on the money until then, he said, they'd be fine. Ghantt pulled out $50,000 from the back of the unmarked Loomis Fargo van. When he finished, the van was filled with $17 million. Ghantt ended up doing more than five years in prison, Chambers did more than 11 years. real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist. The cash was covered with dog food. "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. You might as well take it all, Ghantt tells me. 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. They stocked a wine cellar. real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist. He was an old friend from East Gaston High School, tough and sure of himself. There was in fact a basically similar conversation involving Chambers and Campbell that took place during a barbecue the Campbells were hosting. Him and I still talk every now and then. I don't blame him.". His assignment was to deliver the cash to David and keep him happy until they could find a way to kill him, McKinney said. From going fishing to riding horses on the beach the whole nine yards. As it turned out, Ghantt was zipping up his scuba suit in Mexico. He told Steve he hadn't been able to find David. Charlotte Magazine even ran a feature story about the Loomis Fargo heist with the title, White Trash Crime. The headlines, however, never bothered Ghantt. Inside were, along with other personal items, his keys and wedding ring. I was expecting her to kick me out of the house., Years later, after they married and had a child together, they watched a movie based on the whole ordeal. When he landed in Cancun, his first stop was Walmart. For reasons that remain obscure, Robert spilled the beans to David. Best States is an interactive platform developed by U.S. News for ranking the 50 U.S. states, alongside news analysis and daily reporting. At the Halloween party, though, Kelly gave in to Steve, and agreed it had to be done. By . When McKinney arrived in North Carolina, the plan had changed. You've violated that trust. Question: How much of 'Masterminds' is true? Once in a lifetime, Murdaugh verdict sends a Lowcountry message: No one is above the law | Opinion, Charlotte Waffle House found with live roach, unclean equipment during health inspection. With the help of Aldo, a Mexican waiter he had befriended, David found a beach apartment in Cancun. He was signed by the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2002. David had grabbed $50,000 cash, but could figure out only how to carry $25,000 with him on the plane. We spoke to the FBI agents who investigated the case who say the real-life. But it wasnt. Its everything thats coming north.. But Ghantt, who served as an unpaid consultant to the movie and attended the big Los Angeles premiere earlier in the week, has no such reservations. They sweated, though the night was cool. Ghantt was working as a vault supervisor for Loomis Fargo in Charlotte in 1997, earning about $8 an hour and tired of his humdrum life. Given his position at the bank, hed be the one to pull off the robbery, and he intended to be ready. He told him McKinney was in Mexico to kill somebody. I knew that the news wouldnt break until later that morning. She also assured the teller her cash wasn't drug money. The pager entry was 1-4-3. Scott Grant and Steve pulled up next to her in a Mazda. The plan called for David to leave the vault door ajar, then maneuver a few minutes alone at the end of his shift, long enough to loot the cash, then pass it to Kelly and Steve. Few who were living in the area at the time can forget the "Velvet Elvis" painting Chambers had hanging in his mansion or the tales of cosmetic surgery, BMW convertibles and other signs of excess. There was a third person with them, too, a man named Eric Grant. Its a yes: Clover teen shakes off nerves to earn American Idol golden ticket, Mail carrier cant believe his eyes after seeing NC lottery win. In a word, "Teamwork. Kelly Campbell, 29, a former company employee, entered guilty pleas earlier to bank larceny, money laundering and conspiracy to commit murder charges. That day, FBI agents also would arrest Scott Grant and Eric Payne, who had spent his share of the money on a motorcycle and breast implants for his wife and two sisters. I was just going to get the money into the van. He worked fueling airplanes, driving a forklift, and in 1994 he got a job as a vault superintendent at Loomis. 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. This story was originally published October 3, 2016, 9:12 PM. Mine did. "I missed my family. real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist. Key benefit components include: Health insurance plans. Sandra Floyd, Michele Chambers's mother, remembers the first time she saw the house. Because lets be brutally honest: Theyre not wrong, okay? He drove to the edge of the Loomis compound, which was surrounded by a chain-link fence. [Kelly] told me, 'Just think about it.' . . Why fans love it. At the end of October, Kelly was sentenced to 5 years 10 months in prison. Speaking of his co-defendants, Ghantt says hes not currently in contact with any of them. Ghantt spent a solid hour moving what ended up being 2,700 pounds of cash more than an actual ton into an unmarked company van. I was burned out and just didn't know it. Come for the Chumbawamba, and stay for the return of the Mack. At first, David Ghantt said, "I didn't take her seriously. "You" has three. Loomis officials--forced to break into their own vault because David had taken the keys with him--calculated that he had stolen $17,044,000, making the second biggest heist in U.S. history, following the $18.8 million theft of an armored car by another Loomis Fargo employee just six months earlier. Im a very deliberate person. "As soon as you start, you realize there's no going back," David recalled. Her case closes in 2025. Still, she wasn't happy. The mystery 1-4-3 caller had been Kelly, though agents didn't know it yet. ". "We're not the type that questions everything people tell us," Floyd said. A week later, another informant told the FBI that Eric Payne had quit his job at a printing company soon after the heist and was spending money he probably hadn't earned legally. ', "He asked me if I'd mind holding some money for him. Ghantt:It baffles me to this day. He didn't want to abandon his parents. "Steve said, 'I think we ought to do it that night, when he drops off the van,' " Kelly recalled. Butcher says the federal courts in the Western District of North Carolina have never handled a case quite like Loomis. I'd probably change jobs. The initials on the money wrapper belonged to a Loomis employee who hadn't worked there since before the heist. You see, there's a reason Loomis Fargo used armored cars to move large amounts of cash. Did you get paid? The whole town I was staying in was 98.9 percent Mexican, except for when the cruise ships were in, Ghantt recalls. Kelly was lying. A couple weeks pass, and I call again, Hey, Id like to get some more money. Like David, Kelly was frustrated with her marriage. This is the person I counted as my friend. He goes, My name is Bruno. Explain? On Feb. 27, agents listened in on a call from David to Kelly and learned David's location in Mexico. About 5:45 a.m., he got into his pickup and began the 45-minute drive to work in Charlotte. shaka wear graphic tees is candy digital publicly traded ellen lawson wife of ted lawson real kelly campbell loomis fargo heist 25 Feb/23 (No Ratings Yet) One day, the two employees were in the break room and got to talking about the news of the day a massive bank heist that just occurred in Florida by someone at their company. kellis@gastongazette.com 0:04 0:57 On Oct. 4, 1997, former Kings Mountain resident David Scott Ghantt finished his shift as a vault supervisor for Loomis Fargo in Charlotte. They placed a bust of Caesar in the dining room. Steve also offered $100,000 to his 26-year-old cousin. It's one of the biggest jokes at the place. Sweat soaked David's uniform. He figured Tammy wouldn't go for it, and though his marriage had been troubled, he wasn't certain he wanted to leave her. Now, I kind of know something is fishy., Alone in Mexico with limited cash, Ghantt thought about turning himself in. The name she gave the pup is apropos. Kelly had no problem fanning the flames of their old flirtation. Yes, Carrie Underwood adopted a dog in Charlotte. FILE - Kelly Campbell, one of the 21 people convicted for their involvement in the $17 million Loomis Fargo heist, awaits sentencing for her part in the theft at her mobile home near Mount Holly, N.C. on Aug 16, 1999. Scary. Despite a mega-watt cast featuring Zach Galifianakis and a handful of some of Saturday Night Lives biggest current and former stars, Masterminds, the comedy about Loomis Fargo robbery completely tanked at the box office in its opening weekend, bowing in sixth place with just $6.6 million. Ghantt ultimately agreed to the plan, largely, due to a mountain of credit-card debt and in hopes of changing his life for the better. About the same time, Kelly and McKinney received phone calls from agents who told them to open their doors. Steve Chambers has told agents the missing cash was stolen from a shed in Lincoln County. He gave the rest to Kelly. Before David left for the airport, he had handed Scott an eight-inch key ring. . On Oct. 7, 1997, two FBI agents arrived at Kelly Campbell's home after two Loomis employees had told agents she and David had once dated. He had even scheduled a follow-up appointment at the dentist. At the party, Steve invited Michele's stepfather, truck driver Dennis Floyd, to the basement to play pool. Ghantt knew Chambers as Steve, but didnt find out that his last name was Chambers until the arrests were made. And so, he told her, Google my name. In real life: True. "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. Its really just a matter of timing, more than anything. And she says, How much do you think wed get out of there? I said, Ten to 15 million. But I didnt really know.. "Things I always wanted to do, but never had the time or the money," he said. Down in Jacksonville, a Loomis Fargo employee took $18 million from an armored van he was driving. I wanted to get as far away as I could. "I said, 'Yeah, sure.' He pocketed the money and told Chambers and Campbell to send him his cut in Mexico. Depression had led to smoking a lot of marijuana and taking Prozac, a combination she figures affected her judgment. He didnt even really question me. This is where it starts to unravel, Ghantt tells me with a wry laugh. Ghantt would go on to spend six and a half years in federal prison. Criminals dont usually get high-paying jobs after leaving prison. 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. 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. I hear her typing. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. ". Twice a week over the next 12 months, we will take you back to the winter of sheep cloning and the summer of Con Air. A woman by the name of Kelly Campbell had worked there in 1996, and she and Ghantt had become friends in that time. The cart held about $2 million, and the thief made multiple trips. They put up mauve wallpaper. They soon realized David had stolen more money than would fit in their 55-gallon barrels. So I was glad it was over. 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. Jeffrey Guller, who at 81 is by far the oldest of the Loomis defendants, still owes almost $1.1 million on his original court debt of $1.14 million and will remain on the governments books for another four years.