Meanwhile, Eric lined up the G.T.A.V. They jump in the van and peel out around the loop.. In early February 2005, the F.B.I. He was visibly unnerved, Warren remembers. Warren went up to the third floor to meet Gooch, while Eric waited downstairs for him to call. The Lexington Police Department's commercial-burglary squad was assigned to the case. They stuffed some of the smaller books Gooch had pulled out for them into their backpacks. They climbed onto dorm roofs, where theyd stake out the library for hours at a time, marking down the comings and goings of teachers, students, and security personnel. Ultimately, upon release, his art career has flourished. The take could be more than $5 million. She also said that she was so suspicious and put off by the young men's youth and demeanor that she had recommended to her boss that they not pursue the business. When an agent called, he got a voice-mail recording, This is Spence. In all my art classes I was the only guyin with a bunch of girls who didn't have any idea what they wanted to do. They said that this set, Birds of America, sold for $12 million. I said, Twelve million dollars, just sitting there? The reality however was rather more mundane, he sensed that his studies were little more than a continuation of his high school. By signing up you agree to our User Agreement and Privacy Policy & Cookie Statement. Im not sure, but it was a lot. It was hard for us. From the facts that were available, it appeared that a team of four men, described as Caucasian, in their 20s, had stolen some of the most prized books and manuscripts in the university's collection, and attacked a librarian in the process. Mass Market Paperback. We did the robbery as a way to escape, Eric says. In between soccer practice, classes, painting, and studying, Spencer drew detailed sketches of the inside of the Special Collections Library and the adjacent Rare Book Room, making several appointments with the Special Collections librarian, Betty Jean Gooch, to scout the premises. They got security around that? Nonchalantly, very nonchalantly, I mean, just kind of shooting it between us. for a second vehicle at a secret location, which, according to Warren's plan, is used to transport team and loot to temporary resting place. After the heist, since it is certain that the stolen books will be entered into art-theft databases within a week, they have to get the books appraised at Christie's in New York immediately. All reinhard art prints ship within 48 hours and include a 30-day money-back guarantee. I never intended to paint them and I resisted the idea but in the end I couldnt help but indulge the irony. Along the way a stoned Spencer read aloud from the purloined first edition of On the Origin of Species, particularly fascinated by the section on how the ears of domesticated animals have drooped over generations due to the disuse of the muscles of the ear from the animals not being much alarmed by danger.. He was whisked into a squad car. Realizing that the only way out was through the main floor, they took the elevator up once again and carried the books into a back stairwell that led to another exit. Built over old tobacco fields in the 80s, they feature ponds with fountains, cookie-cutter brick Colonial houses, street names like Ironbridge Drive and Turnberry Lane, and regulations authorizing penalties for unkempt yards and tacky lawn Santas. Choose your favorite reinhard art prints from 2,323 available designs. After the Halloran interview the F.B.I. At 11 the next morning, Chas slipped the G.T.A.V. What they would tell me, then, is their version of eventsand the only complete account of the planning, execution, and aftermath of the heist. The next day, they worked off their hangovers by checking out Ground Zero before strolling into the bustle of Chinatown for lunch. We can do a license, but now we need a passport. So he says, Come see me in a couple of days or a week, but I need money, $2,500. All right, you know, just another thing, O.K., 2,500 bucks. notified all the airports in the area, dispatched officers to surrounding neighborhoods, and called the F.B.I. When Halloran inquired about them, Spencer spoke up and offered to fetch them from the car. Phase 1 begins at the bungalow when all four get into what Warren designated the G.T.A.V., or the Go-to-and-Away-Vehicle, all disguised as old men. Though they attended different high schools, both were varsity captains, and both made all-state. In early 2006, they began serving their sentences in federal prison, with no possibility for parole. Each has a different style of facial hairmuttonchops (Lipka), a Fu Manchu (Borsuk), a Tom Selleck (Reinhard)which Lipka informs me they had carefully trimmed for my visit. The thieves left no fingerprints behind, and there were almost no witnesses. Faced with overwhelming evidence, they all eventually confessed. Serving a seven-year prison sentence following his involvement in a notorious heist (portrayed in the film American Animals), Spencer Reinhard was committed to not losing the best years of his life. He turned to his own art, determined to refine his craft and technique. I attended Tates Creek High School, where I continued to take art classes, but most of my time was dedicated to playing soccer. Far from being social outcasts, they had been popular athletes, and two were on some form of college scholarship. And one thing led to another and we were just like, Lets put this behind us. And once we get past all of that, we started talking about this plan that he and Spencer have. The minimum-security Federal Correctional Institution in Ashland, Kentucky, 125 miles from Lexington, houses approximately 1,200 inmates in multi-story cellblocks encircled by concentric layers of razor-topped fencing and fortified guard towers. As a precautionary measure, they left the books in the car. In the weeks following the book heist, law enforcement followed leads at Transy and reviewed countless hours of security footage from the U.K. computer lab, to which a police technician had traced the e-mail from Walter Beckman to Gooch. Spencer had underestimated his friend's resolve. The others spent time in the library, too, taking notes on staff routines and viable escape routes. par | Mai 29, 2022 | at present, the members of the family hominidae include | fulton county property search qpublic | Mai 29, 2022 | at present, the members of the family hominidae include | fulton county property search qpublic They went back up in the elevator, accidentally stopping on the main floor, where they were spotted by another librarian. It was just funny because weve been in a lot of places that theyve been, Eric says. It had some tennis trivia in there that I wasn't expecting.. He loved that it had been made the screen saver on the F.B.I. you know, it's. it was. Warren made an appraisal appointment at Christie's in New York for Walter Beckman, a pseudonym inspired by the soccer star David Beckham. The crew arrived in New York City early Sunday morning. But after stewing in the magnitude of the potential dollar amount involved, and once convinced of the ease of the heist, the logic of the appraisal, and the legitimacy of Warren's Amsterdam connections, they say, he threw his lot in with the others. Eric dropped the books, and he and Warren made a run for it. As she inspected the items, Halloran dutifully took notes, then asked a few questions regarding their provenance, which Spencer answered as best he could under the circumstances. Back at Warrens that afternoon, the boys were transfixed by local coverage of the Transy Book Heist.. As far as they could see, there were only two ways out: either getting away with the crime or getting arrested for it. Though they attended different high schools, both were varsity captains, and both made all-state. She offered to take his place. I was kind of skeptical, continues Spencer, but the way I rationalized it was: its the biggest auction house. Believe me, you haven't heard the last of us yet.. In high school, Warren, a lanky six-footer with a mop of brown hair, was a popular jock and a class clown who delighted his classmates by bear-hugging his nemesis, the dean of students, at graduation. Ad Choices, The untold story of the Transy Book Heist is one part, Donald Trump to Evangelicals: You Cant Break Up With Me Because Im Breaking Up With You First, Reality Is Submerged in Fantasy: The Villages Is a Boomers UtopiaAnd Demographic Time Bomb, Maybe instead of being one among many, [this film] will make me the one, a fresh-faced Rob Lowe told us in 1984. The meeting ended after 30 minutes, and Ms. Halloran escorted the two out, assuring them that she'd be in touch after conferring with her superiors on the best way forward. See, we have no choice now but to create something new, someplace else. Mr. Beckman now wanted these books appraised. It was during his studies at Transylvania University that Spencer became aware of John James Audubons work, The Birds of America. Like if we ever get caught, were talking about international issues, way past interstate commerce or whatever the hell it is.. Boom. The painting is a kaleidoscope of images, including what appears to be a computer, a cell phone, a bong, the Transylvania library, and loose sheets of notepaper, floating above a desiccated one-eyed young man in a watch cap, kicking back on a beat-up couch with a blue dog on his lap. Eric and Chas dropped Warren and Spencer off around the corner from Christie's. After prison I took up a casual interest in birds. They surveyed the offices of the campus police. Spencer received a commission to paint murals at a local school and kept up his soccer training, Eric started a lawn-care business with his friend Chas Allen, and Warren landed a job at a local day camp. Near the boiler he also jerry-rigged a greenhouse for growing marijuana. The truth is, but for one obvious, big mistakethe trip to Christie'sthey probably would have gotten away with it, a Lexington police detective told me. After researching auction houses online, Warren singled out Christies in New York. Among them was the 2002 photo from the Lexington Herald-Leader of Spencer and Warren playing soccer. Even if they did steal the books, for example, how would they ever sell them? Although the two hadnt really been in contact in the first few months of school, Warren knew that Spencers artistic talents would be an asset. Aside from harming B. J. Gooch, Spencer, Warren, and Eric maintain that they have no regrets. Warren and Chas left the other two and staggered to the nearby China Club, a tacky West Side nightclub, which they knew about from the famous Rick James episode of Chappelles Show. is parked in front of the library and the four are in 1st Position at bottom of stairs of library.. The two boys sought cover from the cops in the sprawling grounds of the housing projects. The stun guns Warren had ordered never arrived, so he drove around town and returned with a Black Cobra Stun Pen, and had Spencer zap him and Eric to test its knockdown power. Thanks for the on my post. Because this is so much bigger than anything weve done before.. Warren sectioned off a bedroom by hanging bedsheets from the rafters and furnished it with an old mattress and a tangerine easy chair he had picked up from Goodwill. The Kentucky Theatre She offered to take his place. Improvising on the plan, he kicked Eric and Warren out on the street, believing three men in a gray minivan would draw too much attention. Once safely back in Lexington, the two created a Yahoo account and sent off the e-mail in which they claimed to have unspecified rare books in their possession, using the name Terry, as instructed. Again, Warren thought otherwise. When they arrived on campus in the replacement G.T.A.V., they couldnt find a parking space anywhere near the library. The plan will continue to grow and mature as the leader goes forward. Behind the main building and through three blastproof security doors is the prison visitors room, where I meet separately with Likpa, Reinhard, and Borsuk for a series of interviews almost a year into their sentence. Ezra Millers Messiah Delusions: Inside. Gooch agreed to reschedule for 11 the next morning. He focused above all on painting, gaining admission into a prestigious Lexington arts program. Chas backs up [the van] and almost hits the woman as Eric comes around to the door. Starting with a 1970s Pierre Cardin canary-yellow blazer that had belonged to his grandfather, he wore a dress shirt with an ostentatiously large collar and a gold silk scarf. A painting by Reinhard, a gifted artist, may offer some clues. The first call went out to the National Crime Information Center, alerting law enforcement to be on the lookout for a gray minivan with temporary plates, the description of a vehicle seen screeching away from the library. Warren was like, Ive talked to these guys. Waiting for the law to snatch them was nerve-racking, but they went on with their lives as if nothing had been amiss. Then, everything becomes meta. As she inspected the items, Halloran dutifully took notes, then asked a few questions regarding their provenance, which Spencer answered as best he could under the circumstances. He said, You do that and you are free then to give them to us when you can. O.K., great. By that point Warren, Eric, and Spencer knew for certain they were going down. Chas cursed Warren as an incompetent, and condemned the other two as burnouts, demanding that the three figure out a way to get the books appraised so they could move on to the next phase of the plan. 2023 Cond Nast. Phase 1 ends when the G.T.A.V. The painting is a kaleidoscope of images, including what appears to be a computer, a cell phone, a bong, the Transylvania library, and loose sheets of notepaper, floating above a desiccated one-eyed young man in a watch cap, kicking back on a beat-up couch with a blue dog on his lap. Wearing a heavy coat, gloves, and a wool cap, Beckman signed the visitors log. But before long they were put to chase once again, this time by two local thugs. because she wanted a new Range Rover, like, what? I was expecting to play soccer quite a lot, but the coach was a completely different person once I got on the team, he tells me. When they arrived on campus in the replacement G.T.A.V., they couldn't find a parking space anywhere near the library. 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