In general We tend to find an unusual appeal in robbery stories.since although we usually condemn the action, we are amazed at the unprecedented methods of the thieves. This is one of those stories, although it did not end as the protagonists expected.
Leonardo Notarbartolo was a Turin jewelry designer who in the 1990s was recognized for his skill in diamond and jewelry business. But there was a side of him that no one had discovered: he was a great thiefwith numerous robberies that concluded successfully and without raising anyone’s suspicions.
However, the Italian felt that he had one more chapter left in his life. Perhaps the best chapter of all. He moved to Belgium with one goal: rob the Antwerp World Diamond Center or the Antwerp World Diamond Center. And, according to legend, two years before the robbery, in a café on Hoveniersstraat, Notarbartolo had a strange conversation with an older man, who approached him and asked:
“Ask me the question,” the Italian was surprised.
-Is it possible to rob the Antwerp Diamond Center?
Yes, it was possible, and in fact I was going to try it. After moving in 2001, he studied the vault for two years. Of course, for that before had to rent a safe deposit box of the 189 in the building.
How was the robbery at the World Diamond Center in Antwerp, Belgium?
A pen and a paper. That was enough for him to do a thorough analysis of the place. 10 extreme security systemsamong which alarms, surveillance cameras and sensors stood out. A door with a simple lock, a four-digit code, a magnetic sensor that was activated when opened without authorization from a guard, and a seismic sensor in the walls.
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Behind the circular door there was another grate through which the interior of the vault could be seen. There, four surveillance systems: light, heat, motion sensors and another camera.
The World Diamond Center is no ordinary place; It houses 80% of the diamonds that circle the world. That is why, to face this difficult task, Notarbartolo needed a little help from his friends: he hired The Genius (specialist in alarm and surveillance systems), The Monster (the best in the field of locks), The King of Keys (no need to explain it) and to have someone you trust, at your Speedy friend.
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After everyone had a great base of knowledge of the vault, the group baptized as The School of Turin began the coup. The leader chose the dates of Valentine’s weekend, between February 14 and 16, 2003, to execute the plan. He took the first step himself, as he went to the place and sprayed the heat sensor, which was synchronized with the motion sensor, with spray to set the hair.
Notarbartolo then left the scene and met with the team. In the early morning of the 15th everyone arrived at a building that shared a backyard with the Diamon Center in a rented Peugeot 307. Everyone except him went to the jewelry store, once they had passed another heat sensor. How did they do it? With fixative, styrofoam and adhesive tape. Simple.
Inside the Peugeot, Notarbartolo was listening to the police frequency and while communicating with Speedy. The other three arrived at the vault without problems, since on a weekend of rest, no security was watching the cameras. After five sensors crossed and the key entered, it only remained to confirm if the key duplicated by El Rey would work and if they could block the magnetic sensor.
Regarding the key, the task was more than simple. Next to the vault there was a room where the guard left the original keyso they didn’t have to use theirs. The Genius took care of the sensor, with an aluminum plate, and disconnected the systems. The Monster forced the lattice. Finally, they deactivated the seismic sensor with a drill, which could go into action once the safes were opened.
The unusual way in which the robbery was resolved
Time was short and the team, in desperation, packed absolutely everything, including diamonds, papers, writings, documents and other items of little value.
Notarbartolo and Speedy left in the Peugeot for Italy with everything stolenbut they differed in the way they disposed of the rest of the non-diamond material. Even though Leonardo wanted to burn it in France, Speedy convinced him to go into a field and burn it right there. When they lit the fire, The owner of the place heard noises and came out, so they escaped and left the garbage abandoned..
However, the farmer reported to the police that they were throwing garbage at his place, so when they arrived they were baffled by what they had found. The Diamond Center papers, a ticket and a sandwich in half, an invoice for a purchase of a portable cameraamong other things. All that garbage meant the end of Notarbartolo’s master plan.
Fernindano Finotto (The Monster) and Elio D’Onorio (The Genius) were captured. A call log allowed the identification of Pietro Tavano or Speedy. Despite this, Notarbartolo decided to return to Antwerp so as not to raise suspicions and to return the Peugeot. What he didn’t know was that the police found evidence of the robbery in his apartment in Turin.
This is how the ringleader of the plan He was caught and sentenced to 10 years in prison.of which he served six, he was released, but for not compensating his victims he was returned to prison in 2011 until he served his sentence. The Monster was arrested in November 2007 and sentenced to 5 years. The DNA recovered from a piece of duct tape cost The Genius a 5-year sentence. The calls earned Speedy 5 years in prison and The King of the Keys was never discovered.
Today, Notarbartolo is 70 years old, he is free like his companions and The whereabouts of all the loot that was stolen was never known..
Source: Ambito
