Over the years, theft in all its forms has always been viewed with deep disdain, whether based on self, situation or circumstance. Be professional or amateur thieves, their dangerous but exhilarating way of life, marked by rare intelligence and filled with risks and uncertainties make them interesting personalities and studies. They are opportunistic and strive to take advantage of any situation that provides them with an escape, they also use whatever tools they can to take what belongs to others. Interestingly, they were tried as famous thieves for their nefarious deeds.
Throughout history, there have been a number of very successful famous thieves whose stories could easily pass for legend. Their abilities are simply undeniable, and their deeds, most of which have been performed right under our noses, are truly incredible. Some of these acts not only created holes in the pockets of those affected, but also racked up some of the largest debts in the world.
The process may differ as well as author(s), depending on the dynamism of the profession, but it has been followed by a large number of people not only today but also in the past. This is a roundup of 10 famous thieves who once existed.
10 famous thieves who never existed
1. Vincenzo Peruggia
This man carried out what is called the greatest art theft of the 20th century, the theft of Leanardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa straight from the walls of the Louvre in France on August 21, 1911. The infamous act created a media sensation , which helped to enhance the fame of the 16th century masterpiece, making it internationally famous, and making it one of the most famous paintings in the world.
Vincenzo Peruggia was an Italian handyman and a former worker at the Louvre. What he taught was a noble intention; returning the painting to his native Italy, he could never have guessed that its absence would be the very thing that would make it the most recognizable work on earth.
Peruggia knew the museum would be closed on the day of his famous theft, so he came the day before and hid. The next day, disguised as a stick, he entered the room where the picture hung and carefully removed it from the wall. He then took the painting out of its frame and hid the canvas under his blouse.
However, the next minute, luck seemed to have run out on him as the door would not open until a kind plumber passing by helped him through the door without having a clue what was going on. he had on him. He hid the painting successfully for two years in his apartment until 1913 when it was found. Peruggia was immediately arrested and sentenced to seven months in prison.
Although he paid the price, Vincenzo Peruggia will always be remembered for his cunning skill and quick abilities and as one of the most famous thieves who ever lived.
2. Joan of Valois-Saint-Remy
Second on our list of famous thieves who never lived is a French woman, Jeanne de Valois-Saint-Remy, also known as Comtesse de la Motte. Her quest to live an extravagant life far beyond what her husband could afford led her to one of the biggest scams in history, dubbed the Affair of the Diamond Necklace. The scandal is one of many that sparked the French Revolution, as well as the destruction of the French monarchy. His only tools were deception and pretense.
Born July 22, 1756, she was married to Nicholsde la Motte but their marriage was described as unsuccessful. As such, Jeanne took a lover by the name of Rétaux de Villette and would later meet Cardinal Prince Louis de Rohan who she believed was not in favor of the Queen, Marie Antoinette, and was trying to get her approval in vain.
Around the same time, the jeweler CharlesAuguste Boehmer had made several unsuccessful attempts to sell a large necklace at an incredible price that only King Louis XVI could afford. However, neither the king nor his wife had the desire to own such an item. To this, Jeanne connected the dots, finding that she could get the jewelry for free.
So, with the help of her husband and her lover, who was also a skilled forger, she devised a plan. Claiming to be a favorite of the Queen, she convinced the Cardinal that she could effect the reconciliation he sought. She in turn encouraged him to correspond with the queen, but had already received a letter written and signed in the queen’s name by her confederate, Retaux de Villette. In it, the Queen expressed her desire to purchase the necklace despite the King’s reluctance to spend such an extravagant amount. He also mentioned that she hoped the Cardinal could lend her some money as a secret favor.
Additionally, she arranged a late-night meeting with the queen’s impersonator. Speaking of which, the Cardinal was fully convinced that he had not only won back the Queen’s good graces but that she was also in love with him. As such, he gladly accepted her request and the jeweler was contacted. He handed the coin to the countess to deliver it to the queen, but of course she never reached it. Jeanne’s husband took the necklace apart and sold the diamonds in England. The deception only appeared when the jeweler asked to be paid.
The cardinal was arrested, along with Jeanne and a handful of others. She was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison but eventually escaped, disguised as a boy. She made her way to London where she published her memoirs in 1789. In it, she tried to justify her actions while blaming the Queen who was her main victim. She died two years later in 1791.
3. Jonathan Wild
Jonathan Wild (1682-1725) was an English underworld figure who managed to live on both sides of the law. He lived in a time when the public was paid to help the police catch thieves. If successful, they would receive half the value of the returned goods. As such, a new profession was born – thieves; and Wild was one of those exploiting the system.
He posed as a public-spirited crimefighter and helped authorities catch other criminals. Thus, he was nicknamed the thief-taker general. On the other side, he was the head of a highly organized gang of thieves in London and systematically organized thefts and manipulated the legal systems, as well as reselling the goods to the original owners and obtaining rewards.
Other weapons of his duplicity include bribing prison guards to free his colleagues and blackmailing anyone who crossed paths with him, including other famous thieves who wished to remain independent or who were rebellious to his control. . He hands them over to the authorities and they are eventually sent to the gallows. However, his luck ran out after a seven-year reign and he too found himself at the end of a rope.
4.Stephen Blumberg
Stephen Blumberg’s only crime was his obsession with books which he converted into a specialty for book theft otherwise known as “book collections”. The bibliomaniac was arrested in 1990 for stealing more than 23,600 rare and valuable books that became known as the Blumberg collections from universities and museums. The lot was valued at $5.3 million and the theft was dubbed the largest book heist in US history. Blumberg, in turn, became known as the Book Bandit and is considered the most successful book thief in history, thus joining the league of famous thieves in the history of theft.
Blumberg, who also suffered from schizophrenia, said the reason he stole the books was to save them from what he called destruction. He believed that the government was trying to ensure that ordinary people did not have access to rare books and unique documents. Thus, his collections were an attempt to thwart the plan. Interestingly, he didn’t sell any of the stolen items because he felt that would be a dishonest thing to do, he thinks they would be returned to their owners or at least someone who would take care of them, in case of his death.
He was convicted and sentenced to four and a half years in prison. However, after his release he returned to his hobby; steal and collect books.
5. Bonnie and Clyde
Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (1910-1934) and ClydeBarrow (1909-1934) were an American duo that wreaked havoc in the central United States during the Great Depression. The pair robbed more than a dozen banks but specialized in stealing cars, robbing small shops and rural gas stations. They are probably the most notorious couple to ever live and make headlines with a long crime spree before they were shot and killed in an ambush on May 23, 1934, laid by Louisiana police.
They met in 1930 and although Bonnie was married at the time and remained so until her death, she partnered with Clyde from 1932 in what became a 21 month criminal fight. As part of their infamy, they eluded the FBI and police until 1934 and killed those trapped or confronted, freed five prisoners from Eastham State Prison in Texas, killed three police officers and kidnapped a police chief.
The couple have been repeatedly noted in popular culture with a number of books, music, movies, and TV shows based on their lives.
6. John Dillinger
John Dillinger (1903-1934) was one Depression-era outlaw who became public enemy No. 1. His first major brush with crime was in 1924 when he robbed a grocery store with his friend, stealing $50. He was convicted of assault and battery with intent to steal and conspiracy to commit a felony. Against his expectation of a soft pardon, he was sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison. Subsequently, he swore to be a terrorist upon his release and was involved in a criminal lifestyle while incarcerated.
He was paroled in 1933 but specialized in bank robberies and ranked among the world famous thieves in the history of crime. Dillinger robbed over 24 financial institutions and four police stations with his notorious crew known as the Dillinger Gang or Terror Gang. His other criminal exploits include escaping from prison twice. After evading police in four states for nearly a year, he met his Waterloo in Chicago on July 22, 1934, when he was killed in a police shootout.
7. Jesse James
An American outlaw, Jesse James was born in Missouri in 1847 and grew up with his brother Frank James before the violence of the American Civil War turned him from farm boy to vicious thief and killer. He formed the James-Younger gang with his brother and the gang committed robberies ranging from bank to train robberies from 1866 to 1876 when several of the members were captured or killed. Nonetheless, they recruited more members and continued their acts that made him popular in the Old West.
James was eventually killed by a member of his gang, Robert Ford, on April 3, 1882. Ford shot and killed him in an effort to collect the reward from Jesse James and promised amnesty for his past crimes.
Already a celebrity during his lifetime, JesseJames was even more so after his death. He became a legendary figure in the Old West and his life has been dramatized, retold and commemorated many times, including in a film starring Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt.
8. David Brandle
Branckle lists 10 famous thieves who never lived infamy for always targeting bank branches inside supermarkets near interstate highways, earning him the nickname – Interstate Bank Mart Bandit. Another interesting thing about him is that he treated bank robbery more like a profession than a crime. To carry out his crimes, the serial bank robber conducted extensive research into the techniques of top bank robbers and tracked the progress of the police investigation into the crimes he had committed.
He was arrested in 2004 and after admitting to being 42 years old Bank robbery in the Midwest in less than two years, he was charged with bank robbery and sentenced to 21 years in prison. His release is scheduled for 2022.
9. Veerappan
The penultimate on our list of famous thieves who ever lived is Koose Munisamy Veerappan Gounder better known as Veerappan. He was an Indian bandit or dacoit who terrorized the nation, killing both humans and animals for over 30 years. He was known for his kidnapping, murder and smuggling of ivory and sandalwood in the forests of southern India, for evading and killing police officers as well as civilians. Veerappan lived from January 18, 1952 until October 18, 2004, when he was finally killed by police special forces.
10. Frank William Abagnale Jr.
This list of famous thieves who ever lived would somehow be incomplete without the man who performed his deed in the 20th century. Rather than carrying guns and knives, he carried out his deeds with the simplest of tools, a pen. Frank Williams Abagnale Jr. (b. 1948) has perfected himself in the act of forgery and impersonation. The movie Catch Me If You Can starring Leonardo DiCaprio as Abagnale and TomHanks would give anyone who has seen it a glimpse into the life and work of the famous impostor. Frank committed his actions between the ages of 15 and 21 with his father as the first victim and claimed to have assumed no less than eight identities, including posing as an airline pilot, doctor, lawyer and prison guard.
Plus, he got so good at it that he was eventually caught by the FBI, they employed him as a security consultant to help them track down crooks and thieves. Besides his work for the federal government, he also runs a financial fraud consulting firm known as Abagnale & Associates.
