Thieves who stole jewels worth 100m ($117m; 89m) from a vault in Belgium in 2003 did not need to resort to violence to carry out one of the largest robberies of all time. Notarbartolo says the Italian authorities traveled to Belgium soon after the heist to question him about Capizzi's possible role in the robbery. He was pretty sure the answer was no. "You're going to have to do one or two things yourself, though.". They were accused of breaking into a vault two floors beneath the Antwerp Diamond Center and making off with at least $100 million worth of loose diamonds, gold, jewelry, and other spoils. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected. Notarbartolo nods and smiles faintly, the laugh lines crinkling around his blue eyes. They found a kilo and 15 grams of diamonds hidden in sealed envelopes between the back seats. He carefully lifted it free and held it up to the light. WebLeonardo Notarbartolo is on Facebook. The man behind the Antwerp diamond heist, Leonardo Notarbatolo, was familiar with the area. They belonged to a special diamond-delivery protection unit, and each cop carried a fully automatic weapon. Then, with the help of a group of dealers, and Notarbartolos School of Turin, the thieves devised a way to get into the secure vault. It's one of the densest concentrations of wealth in the world. The city was crawling with copsmaybe they would be looking for them. Notarbartolo took the exit and surveyed the darkened surroundings. Eventually, Notarbartolo pointed out the apartment. ", "I demand that you send someone to investigate.". In 1998, he bought a narrow strip of forest alongside the E19 motorway. A wine bottle rested near a half-eaten salami sandwich. None of the jewels were recovered. They headed out, and once they were clear of the district, the dealer picked up the conversation. He knew he had made a mistakehe should have turned around after he dropped off Speedy at the train station and gone back to burn the garbage. Organiser Of The Leonardo Notarbartolo (Credit: Wired) February 16 2003, Notarbartolo took the E19 motorway out of Antwerp, racing towards Brussels. Stolen Antwerp Diamonds Still Missing - ABC News If he tipped off a group of his fellow merchants, they could have pulled their inventory out of the vault before the heist. "I'd like to hire you for a robbery," he said. The doors swung open, and the boxes were quickly carried through an unremarkable entrance in the middle of the block. They waited at the bar until closing, drinking espressos and then beer. The extinguisher was fully functional, but a watertight compartment inside housed electronics that picked up and recorded the video signal. While it eventually was termed the biggest heist of the century, carelessness in disposing of the materials used in the robbery helped the police quickly catch the robbers. Notarbartolo reflected on his interactions with the diamond dealer, and a thought flashed through his mind: Maybe the dealer wasn't operating alone. As the police car pulled to the curb, Notarbartolo's wife and the friends who'd come for dinner stepped out of the building. Flawless True Story of the Antwerp Diamond Heist and Keyed lock3. Any break-in would have to be done at night, after the guards had locked down the vault, emptied the building, and shuttered the entrances with steel roll-gates. Is climate change killing Australian wine? Notarbartolo Web(April 2021) Leonardo Notarbartolo had rented a sparsely furnished office for approximately 25,000 Belgian francs ($700) per month in the Antwerp World Diamond Centre. During those quiet midnight hours, nobody patrolled the interiorthe guards trusted their technological defenses. One slip could cut through, instantly breaking the circuit and tripping the alarm. Leonardo Notarbartolo and the heist of the century He has an intimidating reputation. The theft took place in the 2003 district of Antwerp, Belgium. It would also give him an opportunity to clean his apartment more thoroughly. He seemed to be standing in the vault antechamber. When he got there, he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "What is the status of the alarm?" When he had stolen goods to sell, he dealt with only a few trusted buyers. He was known in his hometown as a family man who lived in the suburbs with his wife and children and WebView the profiles of people named Leonardo Notarbartolo on Facebook. Their beat: the labyrinthine Antwerp Diamond District. OpenAIs CEO Says the Age of Giant AI Models Is Already Over. 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