Question: Are you surprised that Hollywood took this on as a movie? Michelle Chambers received a few more months than Ghantt, because she had violated several bond conditions. $17.3 million in cash was robbed from the Charlotte, North Carolina, regional office vault of Loomis, Fargo & Co. on the evening of October 4, 1997. The plan went off with few problems, but after Ghantt was safely in Mexico, his partners were left storing large amounts of cash. I don't want to be mean, but that's probably the dumbest thing they could do. Agents raided safe deposit boxes, where they recovered more than $11 million. Ghantt went on to explain that he left for his flight to Mexico with about $25,000, and that two or three deliveries of extra money was made to him by the man Chambers would pay to kill him. The robbers left it behind as they simply didnt have room for all that cash. The FBI began to question past and current employees of Loomis Fargo. Question: Are you happy that Wilkesboro-nativeZach Galifianakis plays you in the movie? While listening in, they uncovered another more sinister alleged plan to kill Ghantt. Also charged with money laundering were innocent relatives and friends who had co-signed safe deposit boxes. Driving away, he said he felt a mix of fear, confidence and excitement that he outsmarted the FBI. A woman by the name of Kelly Campbell had worked there in 1996, and she and Ghantt had become friends in that time. Ghantt was an on-set consultant for the film. The judge said he doubted she would be able to pay the $4.8 million restitution, but said federal law required him to impose it. The FBI continues to search for a missing $2 million from the theft. Still facing possible unknowns of other people involved, the FBI needed to gather more information without the suspects getting suspicious of them. Guided by federal sentencing rules, prosecutors had requested a sentence of nine years for Michele Chambers. Day in and day out he drives an armored vehicle, transporting millions of other people's money with no escape in sight. Downtown Asheville was cast as a movie set this week, as a major motion picture production filmed in the city center on Tuesday and Wednesday. I found the young woman who worked as a hotel receptionist and remembered many details about Ghantt: how he stayed in Room 101 eating M&Ms, chain-smoking Marlboro Lights, reading Superman comics and listening to the Eagles, DePriest wrote. After the Loomis Fargo heist, when the arrests were made, Ghantt and seven others pleaded guilty in federal court to the charges. David Ghantt struck up a friendship with Kelly Campbell, a coworker who saw eye to eye with him. On the evening ofOctober 4, 1997, the Loomis Fargo & Co branch in Charlotte, North Carolina was in the process of being plundered. display: none; Required fields are marked *. CHARLOTTE Tuesday marked 25 years since one of the biggest armored car heists in U.S. history, and it all went down in Charlotte. Authorities began to hone in on the group and put a wire tap on Campbell's phones. The feds say these six were involved with David Scott Ghantt, and were sharing the loot from Ghantt's $17 million armored-car-company heist in . Steve Chambers would keep the rest. David Ghantt took $50,000 for himself and fled to Cozumel, Mexico. Probably very egotistical of me, I though yeah, sure, I can beat them, theyre college smart and thats about it, Ghantt said. As Campbell would later explain, If David got killed, there couldnt be any finger pointing. Not a documentary. Hes a family man with a wife and daughter. Ghantt was the vault manager and was surrounded daily by millions of dollars-worth of temptation. Here you'll find all collections you've created before. Ghantt stole $17 million from the Loomis vault at work. The movie, about a famous Charlotte bank . They swept the surrounding counties, locating Kelly Campbell and Eric Payne in their homes. I just want people to go to the movies and have a good laugh, even if it's at my expense. Kelly Campbell, a former firm employee, pleaded guilty to bank larceny, money laundering, and murder conspiracy charges earlier this year. The office in Charlotte would be the victim of Ghantt in the year of the opening. David Ghantt served as an unpaid consultant to the film. The action takes place in 1997 and is centered on a small town in North Carolina, where David Ghantt (Galifianakis), an armored-car driver, falls desperately in love with his colleague Kelly . The investigation ultimately resulted in the conviction of eight people directly involved, as well as sixteen others who had indirectly helped them. David Ghantt worked as a vault supervisor for the armoured cash vehicles at the Charlotte, North Carolina branch of Loomis, Fargo & Co. Ironically even though he worked for a company that moved millions of dollars every day, he was relatively underpaid. Actor Owen Wilson plays him in the movie, which includes the real names of all the major players. (I) bought jewelry, bought a van, Campbell recalled of her own spending. Later, they also arrested Nathans older brother. In addition, six other people, some of whom had been spending large amounts of money, were arrested Monday in North Carolina in connection with the case, Perry said. He rarely went to the nearby beach, she said. Over 88% of the money has been recovered since the heist. When Loomis Fargo employees could not open the vault the following day, they called authorities, and the investigation was started. Along with Ghantt and Campbell, there were eight others, including Campbell's former high school friend Steve Chambers and his wife, Michelle. Guillermo dos Santos Coelho. In real-life, Ghantt, then 27, used his access to swipe $17 million, later fleeing to Mexico with $25,000 of it stashed into the legs of pantyhose that he wore as a money belt; while he waited . The robbery was committed by Loomis vault supervisor David Scott Ghantt, his married girlfriend Kelly Campbell (a former Loomis co-worker), Steven Eugene Chambers (a one-time FBI informant), his wife Michelle . Curiously, Payne had recently paid of his Visa in one payment and had been driving around new and rented vehicles for the past weeks. But things didnt quite work out that way. I made a joke once that was the hardest Id ever worked for Wells Fargo -- yeah, its a lot of work, Ghantt said. The Gaston Gazette interviewed Ghantt, whos now in his late 40s and living as a free man in Florida. On the fateful day of Oct. 4, 1997, Davit Ghantt decided to proceed with the Loomis Fargo heist. Friends of Campbell had also begun spending large amounts of cash. Now on the lam and in over his head, David must dodge the authorities, evade a hilarious hit man, Mike McKinney, and try to turn the tables on the ones he trusted most. The defendants received sentences ranging from probation for several relatives to over 11 years in federal prison for Steve Chambers. "I've moved on with my life," he said Tuesday. Ghantt was working as a vault supervisor for Loomis Fargo in Charlotte in 1997, earning about $8 an hour and tired of his humdrum life. Your daily dose of History. Prosecutors also resisted Culler's efforts to downplay Michele Chambers' role in the theft. One night in a small North Carolina town, a down-on-his-luck guard at Loomis Fargo manages to steal $17 millionliterally more than one ton of cash. Instead, he was plotting to kill Ghantt - and burning through a great deal of cash. This caused them just to leave the cash they could not take with them in the back of the van. So they went to Mexico and arrested Ghantt in order to protect him. The FBI recovered several million dollars in a van found in Mecklenburg County, but about $14 million in cash is still missing, authorities said. Consequently, they called the police. When the cheerleading coach broke the news to Katrina Kohel that she was the only one left on the cheer squad, Kohel was determined to compete anyway. Kelly Campbell. They drove off to a printing business called Reynolds & Reynolds in northwest Charlotte. David Ghantt 2) A joke that gave birth to an idea. Loomis Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina found itself the target of a robbery on October 4 th, 1997 by one of their vault security guards, David Ghantt and his girlfriend, Kelly Campbell who had been a former employee at the time.Along with Ghantt and Campbell were eight others including a former high school friend of Campbells, Steve . It took me going to prison to realize I was a bag of worms, and it took me years of work to be somebody worthy to come back into our society, he said. A connection between each suspect began to emerge slowly, and as the intensity of spending grew, suspicion did as well. She is a self-proclaimed "super-self-aware person" and this is her first guest post on the blog. The Chambers traded in their trailer for a $635,000 mansion in Cramer Mountain - bought with mostly $20 . When Ghantt called Campbell however, the FBI was able to track his location, and arrested him with the help of the Mexican police onMarch 1, 1998. Ghantt:I've burned that bridge years ago. The 2016 movie Masterminds, starring N.C. native Zach Galifianakis, loosely interprets the facts of the heist in a goofy action comedy. Steve began talking about wiring money to overseas accounts, and even purchasing a nightclub. One fact at a time! The others, though, went no farther than Cramer Mountain. Accompanying her . The police, in turn, called the FBI since 95% of the money handled at the facility was owned by banks. One day, David's girlfriend Campbell was talking to an old friend named Steve Chambers. One day, Campbell met up with Steven Chambers, an old high school classmate and a small-time crook. How I held it together is beyond me, Ghantt said. The man's famil, Growing up in Goldsboro, Greensboro Day senior Jaydon Young averaged 25.9 points per game as a freshman at Wayne Christian. Of course, I went on a spending spree. Later, DePriest would learn through Diamants reporting for his book that Ghantt was terrified of being followed in Mexico, always looking over his shoulder and sitting near the exit in restaurants. Several cars and nine safety deposit boxes were seized, authorities said. That first day in prison was scary, Ghantt said. WSOC TV facebook feed(Opens a new window), Part 1: When you have money, you just have different problems: The Loomis Fargo heist, 25 years later, ALSO READ: Trio charged following takeover-style bank robbery in South End, sources say, ALSO READ: Police: Suspect arrested in Rock Hill following bank robbery in northwest Charlotte, ALSO READ: Business owner says more than $100K in checks stolen, then forged and deposited, 13-year-old girl killed in crash involving tractor-trailer on I-485 in west Charlotte, police say, Tattooed arm of missing man found inside shark caught by fishermen, Shanquella Robinson case needing high-level diplomatic intervention, attorney says, Wells Fargo to close Charlotte-area branch, two others in NC in consolidation move, Murdaugh Trial, Day 27: Jury visits crime scene before closings at trial, WSOC - TV Public File Contact / Program Director, WAXN - TV Public File Contact / Program Director. 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