theft

Stories 501 - 520 | << Prev   Next >>

Driver Clings to Stolen Truck in 70-Mile Cop Chase

(Newser) - A driver leaped onto his stolen truck as it pulled out of Georgia parking lot and held on for a 70-mile high-speed cop chase, reports CNN. The driver called police from his cell phone from the truck, and clung to the rig as the thief gunned it. The getaway was...

Son 'Manhandled Astor to Change Will': Prosecutor

Anthony Marshall exploited mom's dementia to funnel fortune to him, says prosecutor.

(Newser) - Brooke Astor's son "dragged" his frail mom from her nurse's arms to a closed-door meeting about her will, which was immediately changed in his favor, according to the prosecutor at the heir's  fraud and grand larceny trial yesterday in New York. Anthony Marshall exploited his vulnerable mother's dementia to...

Va. Repairman Swiped $170K From Meters

William Fell made off with a sixth of city's total meter revenue

(Newser) - A repairman stole $170,000 in coins from parking meters in Alexandria, Va., during the past 12 months, the Washington Post reports. William Fell, 61, looted meters in the early hours of the morning before his maintenance shifts, police say. Wary of depositing his ill-gotten gains, Fell kept the coins...

Facebook Helps Nab Real-World Thief

(Newser) - Anyone questioning the utility of Facebook should talk to Carla Pillo Mote. The Philadelphia advertising exec used the social networking site to identify and locate the man who drunkenly absconded with her company computer, wallet, and tax forms well before the police could make a move, reports Mediabistro's Agency Spy...

Madoff Victims Trustee Eyes Brother's Bucks

New focus on Peter as trustee seeks to compensate swindle victims

(Newser) - A federal court official may seek to claw back any funds transferred by Bernard Madoff's swindle company to his brother, reports the New York Post. The new focus on Madoff's sibling, an officer in his firm, was revealed in a letter to an attorney representing a New York law student....

Why Thieves Don't Care About Your Car Stereo

New devices can't be transferred between cars

(Newser) - More than a million car stereos were stolen in 1994, but in the past 15 years, yearly thefts have plummeted by more than half, NPR reports. Why? Automakers now install good stereos from the start, and “there's no market for factory radios because they normally don't fit in any...

Grandmother: Casey Stole $45K From Anthonys

(Newser) - Casey Anthony’s grandmother alleges that the murder suspect may have stolen up to $45,000 from her parents, the Orlando Sentinel reports. “I don’t think she blowed it all at once, but what was she doing all this time?” Shirley Plesea told investigators in August, according to...

840-Pound Brazilian Emerald Lands in Court

Detectives puzzle over ownership of 840-pound Brazilian gem

(Newser) - A colossal emerald valued at almost $400 million is under lock and key in Los Angeles County while detectives try to figure out who owns it, the Wall Street Journal reports. Police managed to track down the 840-pound Bahia emerald after it was reported stolen last fall, but they also...

Germans Exalt Grocery Clerk Sacked Over $2

She's become a symbol of recession-time class struggles

(Newser) - A grocery clerk fired from her job of 31 years after allegedly stealing $1.66 has turned into a recession-time hero in Germany. While financial fat cats walk away with billions despite triggering a worldwide economic crisis, the sacking of a 50-year-old mother seems unfair, her supporters tell Der Spiegel....

To Combat Digital Piracy, Try Stealing

Composer pitches real-world thievery to help raise awareness

(Newser) - A Hollywood composer wants you to stop illegally downloading music, and he's willing to put his freedom in jeopardy to make his point. Because the public doesn't seem to equate swapping digital files with stealing, Richard Gibbs is pushing for people to swipe other products in a nationwide "day...

Twitterers Help Lance Get His Bike Back

Twitter, Facebook kept bike in the news

(Newser) - Turns out celebs can use Twitter for more than just ranting against loud neighbors: Lance Armstrong used social networking sites to get his bike back, the Telegraph reports. He issued an “APB” to his 140,000 Twitter followers, and on Facebook, a group popped up named “1 Million...

Horse Tail Thieves Rile Colo. Ranchers

Who's stealing horses' fly swatters—and why?

(Newser) - Angry horse owners are bridling at bizarre new attacks on their four-hoofed friends, reports the Los Angeles Times: tail theft. One Colorado rancher woke up recently to find someone had chopped off the long flaxen tails of all of his Belgian draft horses. "It makes me so mad,"...

Lance's Custom Bike Ripped Off

Champ offers reward via Twitter

(Newser) - Thieves made off with Lance Armstrong’s customized time trial bike and the bikes of three teammates last night, VeloNews reports. "There is only one like it in the world therefore hard to pawn it off,” Armstrong wrote on his Twitter account with a photo of the Trek...

Thefts Plague Pioneering Paris Bike Program

Thieves, daredevils give fleet of rental bikes a rough ride

(Newser) - Paris’ widely copied self-service bike rental program has had a much rougher ride than planners bargained for, the Daily Telegraph reports. Almost 8,000 of the 20,000 bikes originally supplied through the Vélib project have been stolen in the past 18 months. Many others have been vandalized or...

Tables Turn: Madoff Gets Ripped Off

Thieves rip-off investment fraudster

(Newser) - In a bit of poetic justice, a thief stole an expensive statue from the Palm Beach estate of Bernard Madoff last week, the New York Post reports. Burglars took a $10,000 copper statue depicting two lifeguards from the fraudster accused of losing $50 billion of investors’ money in a...

Shoplifting Grows as Economy Doesn't

Desperation, holiday shopping drive thieves

(Newser) - The tough economic climate is driving up shoplifting arrests, and the holiday season is making the situation worse, the New York Times reports. The timing is poor for stores that have had to shrink security staff amid financial woes. “More people are desperate economically, retailers are operating with leaner...

High Schoolers Cheat, Steal, Say Morals A-OK

High schools full of rampant cheating, adults blame pressures

(Newser) - Almost a third of US high schoolers are thieves and two thirds are cheaters, a new study says. Among nearly 30,000 students surveyed, 64% admitted to cheating on a test, 30% to shoplifting, and 23% to stealing from family. "The competition is greater," said one education...

Feds Recover Bookmark From Hitler's Mistress

Sting operation nets gift from Eva to Adolf stolen from museum

(Newser) - A gold bookmark given Adolf Hitler by lover Eva Braun, stolen from a Madrid museum in 2002, has been recovered in a sting operation, reports the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Undercover federal agents pounced on a Romanian businessman in a Seattle parking lot, where he had arranged to sell the bookmark for...

Millionaire's Thievery Ruins Priceless Books

Iranian millionaire sliced pages from valuable volumes

(Newser) - An Iranian scholar and millionaire sliced pages from extremely rare volumes at the British Library, some dating back to the 16th century, to replace missing sections in his own book collection, reports the Independent. Farhad Hakimzadeh, who pleaded guilty to theft and faces prison time, removed pages from a reported...

NYC Cops Bust Pickpocket, 76, for 37th Time

Retirement not looking likely for granny with 30-year rap sheet

(Newser) - Can you blame an old lady for being set in her ways? New York City cops have busted a 76-year-old woman with 20 aliases and 30 convictions for the 37th time, the New York Post reports. This time known as "Katherine Kelly," she was nabbed after lifting a...

Stories 501 - 520 | << Prev   Next >>