This warehouse-like building is the Los Angeles cash distribution center, containing over $100 million. Daily, armored trucks transport this money to and from banks. These armored trucks have armed guards, and even the drivers are armed.
The Heist Plan and the Formation of the Gang
One man will observe, think, and plan to rob this building, and he will form a six-person gang. The strange thing is that these six individuals have no criminal records and had never stolen anything in their lives before this operation. Imagine transforming from an ordinary, clean person into a thief stealing tens of millions without any gradual progression. Despite the meticulous plan they devised and the intelligent and precise execution of the operation, a small plastic piece they accidentally left behind would be the reason everything turned against them.
Cash Transit Companies and Distribution Centers
If one of us wants liquid cash, they go directly to the bank and withdraw from their account. But where do banks get this money? How does it reach them? Usually, there are companies, either private or governmental, specializing in cash transportation. These companies own special armored trucks, operated by armed guards and drivers, and they transport this money to banks. The story I will tell you today took place in Los Angeles in 1997. One of the companies specializing in cash transportation was called Dunbar Armored. This company has centers for distributing liquid cash in cities, where cash comes from the central bank or the Federal Reserve and accumulates in these distribution centers, and then it is distributed to local banks via cash transit trucks.
Dunbar Cash Distribution Center: An Enticing Target for Thieves
This Dunbar company is responsible for storing and distributing these funds to banks. This building you see before you was one of Dunbar's largest cash distribution centers. This center contained over $100 million on any given day. These millions, of course, enter and leave this distribution center daily. So, literally, the amount of cash in this place is greater than any local bank. This is the city's cash center, so if you are a thief and want to target a place to rob, this center would be the perfect target, especially since the security at this center is less than bank security. The reason is that banks are public places that anyone can enter and exit, while this place is a private area that does not receive customers or people. Of course, security systems are still in place, and guards are present, but the point is that the security measures there were not at the level of banks, even though there was more money.
A Quick Tour Inside the Dunbar Security Building
The building's exterior is very ordinary, a single story resembling a warehouse. This is the gate through which cash-laden transport trucks enter, and these are the doors to the cash loading and unloading rooms. This small door is the entrance for employees. This outdoor area has a surveillance camera that can rotate in all directions, but it is the only camera outside. However, if we enter through the door, we will find that all the corridors and rooms inside are full of surveillance cameras because the inside is what matters. Cash does not go outside except by trucks, and the trucks are equipped with armed guards and drivers.
Internal Building Layout Details and Surveillance Weaknesses
To clarify the picture further, this diagram of the building's interior has been drawn. This is the door through which employees enter, and this room is called the guards' room, and it is also called the lunchroom because the guards sit and eat there. Inside this room there is a smaller room called the surveillance room. This room contains screens that broadcast camera feeds, and usually there is a guard monitoring these screens 24 hours a day. But we must keep in mind that the number of screens was only four, while the number of cameras reached 25, which means that the screens did not show all camera feeds at once, but rather rotated between the cameras. This information is important. Returning to the diagram, this area is the money loading and unloading area, directly overlooking the outdoor parking lot. And directly next to this area is the vault room. Inside the vault room, we have the main vault where they keep the cash, and this vault has a very thick iron door. As for the area outside the vault, they call it the money preparation area, which is where accountants sit and prepare the cash. Of course, all cash is always prepared and counted before or when it leaves the vault to be loaded onto trucks. This gives you an idea of the building's layout. We must keep this diagram in mind because we will return to it later.
Allen Pace: The Guard Who Planned America's Biggest Heist
As we mentioned, the building did not have the strongest security and protection measures, but the problem any thief thinking of robbing this place would face is that they would not be able to scout it and learn its entrances and exits easily. They would be ignorant of all the security measures in it, and they cannot enter and search left and right and go to the vault, for example, as we see in some banks that contain safe deposit boxes. The matter is difficult because this is a private place. And here you will be surprised to learn that today's story hero, the mastermind behind this operation, is actually someone who has never stolen anything before. This will be the first robbery he has ever committed in his entire life, a person who has never entered the world of crime and has never had problems with the police, his record is clean. So how can such a person think of targeting a difficult and unknown place like a cash distribution center? The reason is that he was one of the center's employees; he worked there as a security guard. This man's name is Allen Pace; he was an ordinary person, as we said, with no criminal record, but as a security guard, he knew how to use weapons, pistols, and radios. Allen's job was to inspect and maintain the trucks that entered and left the center daily, to ensure that the locks and security systems and everything in the truck were in optimal condition. So imagine Allen seeing these millions going and coming before him daily. Anyone working in such a place with such a huge amount of money would start thinking: "If all this money were mine, I could do many things in my life." Anyone who sees this money in front of them will have such thoughts, but Allen took it to the next stage: "How can I make this money truly mine?" From here, the seeds of the operation began to be planted in his mind.
Tamiko Karnes: Allen's Girlfriend and a Crucial Source of Information
What also helped Allen was the presence of someone close to him who worked at the same center. Allen had a girlfriend named Tamiko Karnes, who worked at the same center, and her job was to manage the security recording devices, meaning the devices that recorded camera footage and videos were under her management. So, her position and job were very useful to Allen, and perhaps they were among the main things that made him determined to carry out this idea. His girlfriend, Tamiko, knew many security details they used at the distribution center, and this would greatly benefit Allen. So Allen began to think about how he could carry out the operation, and he began to think about the right people to participate in the operation with him, because he couldn't do it alone.
Tamiko's Dismissal and Allen's Motivation to Accelerate the Plan
Allen kept these thoughts in his mind for several weeks, but suddenly, while he was in the middle of this thought process, his girlfriend Tamiko came in and told him: "I've been fired." What happened was that the company management fired her because they suspected her of trying to steal. They found some money bags placed in an isolated corner not covered by cameras, and they suspected her because there was circumstantial evidence that pointed fingers at her. It wasn't conclusive evidence, but circumstantial, yet it was enough to fire her. I don't know if she actually tried to steal some money or if it was just bad luck and she got caught in the middle. Anyway, after his girlfriend was fired, Allen's relationship with management became tense, and attention turned to him as well.
Forming the Team: Eugene Hill as the First Partner
Allen felt that his turn might come, even though he hadn't done anything wrong yet, and he began to feel that he needed to move quickly with the operation. The first thing he had to do was form a team, because it was impossible to carry out this operation alone. He decided that this team would be made up of those close to him. So the first person he talked to about it was his best friend, whose name was Eugene Hill. Eugene also had no criminal record, his record is clean, and he worked in the same profession as Allen, a security guard, and had experience in using weapons and security matters in general. Convincing Eugene was easy for Allen because he was already his best friend, and he knew his nature and knew he would agree.
Expanding the Team: Freddie Macree and Terry Brown
But he had to start choosing the other members more carefully; he had to be sure of the nature of anyone he asked to join them, because if he asked the wrong person, they might expose them. Allen spoke to two additional people: the first was named Freddie Macree, who was also a security guard, and one of Allen's oldest friends; they had known each other since they were ten years old. The second was named Terry Brown, and yes, Terry Brown also worked as a security guard. Allen met him through work, where they worked together as bouncers for a nightclub.
Plan Details: Drawing with Chalk on the Ground and Impressing Friends
Now, Allen needed to convince them to join the gang and carry out the operation with him. So he gathered them in a parking lot and began to draw a diagram of the distribution center building on the ground with chalk. He started explaining the details of his plan, where they would enter, and exactly what they would do. He spoke with confidence and intelligence, explaining it in a way that showed them that he had truly studied the matter; he wasn't someone who relied on luck. When his friends saw Allen excited and confident, they also got excited with him and told him: "We're with you." And so, the team members became four, all of them close associates whom Allen trusted in his life.
Gathering Secret Information: Filming Inside the Building
The next step Allen took was a bit daring. He went to work with a camera and started filming the place. His excuse was that he was taking souvenir photos; he even took photos of his colleagues and the accountants working in the vault room. It was as if he was compiling a file on all the people and places in the center. He wanted to show his friends these photos so they would have a clear idea of how to move around the place, the locations of the cameras in general, and even the appearances of the employees they might encounter. Although the filming was a bit risky, Allen was one of the employees in the place, and even if someone saw him filming, they wouldn't say anything to him. They might ask him: "What are you doing?" But most likely, no one would suspect him of planning something.
The Final Plan: Two Cars, Friday Night, and Avoiding Cameras
After Allen gathered and studied all these details, he drew a detailed diagram of the building and met with his friends again, beginning to tell them how they would carry out the operation in detail. The plan was as follows: First, they would take two cars. The first car would be an ordinary sedan, and the second car would be a small delivery truck, which they would rent. So they rented the truck and the small car, and they would park the small car a short distance from the distribution center. After that, they would all get into the truck and go to the center. They would enter the building through the door using the key Allen had. They would carry out the operation on a Friday night, which is the night before the weekend. This night has the most cash in the center, and at the same time, it is the least guarded night because it is the weekend holiday. During this night, they would leave the iron vault door open because the accountants would be sitting there counting incoming cash and putting it into the vault. And because the amount of cash is huge, they don't open and close the vault door periodically; they leave it open, which would also help them.
Unexpected Night Guard and Employee Control
After entering through the door, they would avoid surveillance cameras. Allen knew the locations and angles of all the cameras, and there would only be one guard on duty that night. Allen knew exactly when this guard would eat his dinner, so they would enter at the time the guard was eating to surprise him. After they subdued the guard, they would enter the vault room, and there would be accountants present, along with someone they called the supervisor. This supervisor also had a button under his table. As soon as he pressed this button, it would trigger an alarm and call the police. So, they had to subdue the supervisor before he had a chance to press the button. After they tied up all the employees, the last step was to enter the vault and take the money and load it into their small truck. But they had to focus on not taking any new money or recently printed money, because this money comes in bundles and its serial numbers are tracked, making it easy to trace. So, they should only target old money. This is an important point, and of course, Allen would direct them on which money to take and which money to leave, because he was the one who knew the place.
Thomas Johnson: The Fifth Member and Intensive Training
Allen, after reviewing the details of the plan and beginning to see the situation more clearly, felt that they would need an additional member in the group. And here enters the new member whose name is Thomas Johnson. Thomas was a friend of theirs, and he also worked in security; he was a security guard. Thus, the gang members became five, all of them working in the same profession, security guards. Allen and his friends continued to review the details of the plan every day, and they would sit on the diagram and study the timing, movements, and everything, and even the photos of the employees they kept reviewing until they memorized their faces. Allen clarified to them who the guard was, who the accountants were, and who the supervisor was. They wanted to go in 100% prepared for everything.
Final Preparations: Clothing, Weapons, and Camera Timing
Allen told them they would wear all black clothing, and they would wear masks and gloves to conceal their identities as best as possible. And they would carry weapons with them. The intention was not to harm anyone, but since the guards were armed, the thinking was that they too should be armed as a precaution for any emergency. And certainly, employees would submit more easily if they saw weapons, but so that they wouldn't have to use these weapons, and so that no escalations would occur, they shouldn't be exposed in the first place.
Exploiting Surveillance System Weaknesses with Tamiko's Information
One of the most important things they also discussed was timing their movements with the cameras. As I told you, there are a large number of cameras inside the building, specifically 25 cameras, but the surveillance room only has four screens. These screens switch between cameras, meaning that each screen, after a certain period, for example, every ten seconds, switches to a different camera feed, and the screens keep rotating between camera feeds. So, the timing of these cameras and the way the feeds switch is very important. For example, when they want to cross a certain corridor, they must be sure that the camera monitoring that corridor is not broadcasting on the screen at the moment they will cross, because if the guard sees them, he will trigger the alarm and the game will be over. So it would have been impossible for them to know these timings and how the feeds switch between the screens if they didn't have inside information. And this information, of course, came from Tamiko, Allen's girlfriend, who, as we said, was literally in charge of the camera recording systems before she was fired. So she knew all these details. And so, they knew exactly when each camera would be broadcasting to the screens that the guard was monitoring, and they could adjust their movements to avoid all the cameras. Imagine that Allen trained his friends professionally; he would specify the timings for them and calculate the speed and distance for each corridor they needed to cross, so that when they entered the building, they would know exactly the timing and speed they needed. Everything had to be calculated and precise.
Surprise Dismissal: Accelerating the Operation Date
Everything up to that moment was going well. The plan was clear, and they were practicing it daily. And now it was September 1997, the month they intended to carry out the operation. But Allen was hesitant; he wanted to carry out the operation at the end of the month, wanting to keep training his friends until they were completely confident that they had reached the required level. But a surprise would happen that was unforeseen. Allen received a call from the company's management, and the news was that he had been fired and had to hand over his keys immediately. The news was surprising to Allen and greatly disrupted his plans. But the first thing he did was quickly copy the keys before handing them over to the company. And here Allen felt that the operation had to be carried out as soon as possible; the waiting time was over. So he called his friends and told them: "We will carry out the plan next Friday, which is September 12, 1997." So everyone immediately began their preparations.
Eugene Rents the Truck and Alibi Plan
Allen asked his best friend, Eugene, to rent the truck they would use in the operation. It was a regular truck, considered small to medium in size. The second step was for Allen to create an alibi for himself; he knew he had just been fired, and certainly, employees who had been fired recently would be under suspicion, and he was one of them. So he had to get an alibi for himself. His friend Eugene told him that his family would be holding a big party, and there would be many people at this party, relatives and friends. All they had to do was attend the party, and in the middle of the party, they would secretly leave and carry out the operation, and then return immediately. And all the people who would be present at the party would testify that they were there, especially since most of these people were relatives and friends.
Last Moments Before the Operation: Adding the Sixth Member and Agreeing on Code Numbers
We arrived at the day of the operation, Friday, September 12, 1997. Allen and his friends gathered at Eugene's house and began reviewing the plan again. And when they reviewed the details, they felt that they needed an additional person with them. There were five of them, and one would sit by the truck, and another would sit by the guard they would tie up, leaving only three. And there might be three to four employees in the vault room. So Allen wanted to be sure that their number was greater than or equal to the number of employees so they could fully control the situation. And here enters the sixth member who was added to the team literally eight hours before the operation. This member's name is Eric Boyd, and he is actually Allen's brother-in-law; he was married to his sister, meaning he was a relative and a trustworthy person. And so the group became six. Of course, since Eric had not trained with them, and it would be difficult for him to know all the details in these few hours, his task would be to stay with the truck.
Maintaining Silence and Securing Families
At the end of the meeting, they continued to review the plan more than once to ensure that everyone understood their role and exactly what they would do. And they agreed that during the operation, they would call each other by numbers, meaning they numbered themselves from one to six, and each one would call the other by their number so that no one would reveal their identities. And of course, they would have radios for communication. Finally, they agreed with each other that if one of them was caught, they should not speak, and the rest would take care of their family and ensure they lived a comfortable life, especially financially, until he was released from prison.
The Night of the Operation: Leaving the Party and Arriving at the Center
Time passed quickly, and it was 10:00 PM. The six headed to the party that would be their alibi. They entered the party, mingled, and talked to people, making their presence prominent so that people would remember them. After that, around 11:00 PM, they began to secretly leave the party one by one, leaving some time between them so that no one would notice. In the end, two of them got into a normal sedan, and the remaining four got into the small truck they had rented. They drove together all the way until they reached a place near the center. At this place, they stopped the small car, and the two who were in this car got into the truck with the rest. The driver, who was the new member of the team, would remain in his normal clothes. As for the remaining five who were inside the back of the truck, they changed their clothes and wore all black clothing, put on masks and gloves, and prepared their weapons. Immediately after that, they drove the truck to the center.
Allen's Luck and the Guards: Camera Aimed at the Supervisor's Car
When they arrived near the center, Allen immediately knew that luck was on their side. The external camera was pointed at a pickup truck in the parking lot. This pickup truck belonged to the supervisor on duty. This supervisor oversees the movement of money inside the vault and supervises the work of the accountants. Allen knew this supervisor and knew that he loved his car dearly and was extremely careful with it; he had just bought a new car. So the supervisor would ask the guard to point the external camera at his car, because the external camera could rotate and move, so instead of the guard pointing the camera at the door, he would leave the camera on the supervisor's car, and it was originally only one camera outside, there was no other. So this was good fortune for them. But in any case, Allen and his friends knew the timing of the cameras appearing on the screens, so even this external camera they could bypass without being caught. But since it was already pointed elsewhere, this was also a blessing.
Entering the Building and Avoiding Internal Surveillance Cameras
And quite simply, they walked to the door, opened it with the key Allen had copied before handing over his keys, and entered. And now they would face the most difficult task, which was to avoid all the cameras inside, especially in the corridors. And here comes the benefit of the training they had been doing all this time. They knew the locations of all the cameras and knew the time they needed to move. So when the camera was broadcasting on the screen, they would stop in their place, and when this camera changed the broadcast, they would move immediately.
Precise Timing for Movement: Exploiting Tamiko's Knowledge
These cameras were precise in timing, as the system would switch broadcasts every certain number of seconds. They had this information because, as we said, Allen's girlfriend, Tamiko, was literally the supervisor of these devices before she was fired, so she knew all these secrets. And so they knew exactly when each camera was broadcasting to the screens that the guard was monitoring, and they could adjust their movements to avoid all the cameras. Imagine that Allen trained his friends professionally; he would specify the timings for them and calculate the speed and distance for each corridor they needed to cross, so that when they entered the building, they would know exactly the timing and speed they needed. Everything had to be calculated and precise.
Subduing Guards and Employees in the Vault Room
And now, if we go back to the diagram I showed you earlier, the gang entered through this door and made their way through the corridors, avoiding surveillance cameras until they reached the guards' room. And as we said, there was supposed to be only one guard on duty that night. And it was just after midnight. And Allen knew the guard on duty that night. This guard always had his dinner at exactly 12:00 AM. So the guard was most likely not monitoring the camera screens, and this was an additional precaution by Allen in the timing of the operation. This was intentional, and he wouldn't have been able to do it if he hadn't known the guards' habits because he had worked with them and lived with them for all those years.
Unexpected Encounter: Truck Driver Enters the Building
And indeed, they stormed the guard's room and found the guard eating, so they subdued him and tied him up immediately. That is, they didn't even need to avoid the surveillance cameras in the first place, because the guard was eating and wasn't monitoring the screens. This in itself was a clever insight from Allen. Anyway, after they tied up the guard, they took his pistol from him. And Allen immediately then took the keys to the vault room from him. After that, Allen went to the small surveillance room containing the four screens and checked the number of employees in the vault room. The room had two female accountants and the supervisor. At this moment, although everything was going perfectly and according to plan, no matter how much you plan, things will always happen beyond your control. What happened at this moment was that a second guard entered the building. This guard was one of the truck drivers, and truck drivers are not supposed to enter the building at this time. Truck deliveries are supposed to be over, and all drivers have gone home. And of course, as we said, these drivers were guards, meaning they were armed. So this was an uncalculated surprise. Quickly, Allen and one of his friends went out to confront the driver and subdue him. And luckily for them, this driver was not carrying his weapon at that moment, so they were able to subdue him and tie him up easily and threw him on the ground with the other guard. One of the five remained with the tied-up guards to monitor them. As for the remaining four, they immediately moved from the guards' room to the vault room.
Stealing the Money: Avoiding New Bills and Bagging Them
And as we said, Allen took the room keys from the guard. But before entering the room, Allen looked through the glass surrounding the room to make sure there were no surprises or additional people inside. And indeed, there were only three people: the supervisor and two female accountants. Allen knew that their entry had to be swift and quick, and the first person to subdue was the supervisor, because under his table there was an alarm button. If he managed to press this button before they reached him, the police would come immediately. So as soon as Allen opened the room door, they entered and immediately pointed their weapons at the supervisor first, ordered him to raise his hands, and warned him not to even think about pressing the button. And indeed, the supervisor immediately submitted and did not risk himself. So the thieves tied him up along with the two female accountants.
The Truck Incident: A Small Plastic Piece Could Expose the Robbery
The thieves were somewhat rough in their treatment of the employees. One of the accountants, when they subdued her and forced her to lie on the ground with force, injured her shoulder and was hurt, so she screamed in pain. Allen comforted her, saying: "Don't be afraid, my dear, everything will be fine." After that, they asked the supervisor if there was anyone else or any other employee in the building, and the supervisor told them: "No, it's just us." And indeed, the gang swept the building and made sure no one else was there. And after they had control of the place, they moved to the most important step, which was, of course, stealing the money.
Removing Evidence: Destroying Dual Recording Devices
First, they communicated by radio with their driver, Eric, and opened the door for him to drive the truck into the money loading area. But what happened was that Eric, while backing up the truck, hit the side of the wall, and the taillight broke slightly, and a small piece fell off. A piece the thieves did not notice. After that, of course, they entered the vault and began taking the money. The money was in bundles, and it was all in twenty-dollar denominations. And remember what we said, they had to avoid new money that had just been printed because it is arranged with serial numbers and is easy to track. So Allen directed them to the bundles containing old money, and they would take these bundles and put them in garbage bags, and then they would take these bags and put them in the truck, and they quickly filled the truck with bags of money, literally filling the entire truck. And of course, before they left, they had to get rid of any evidence they left behind, and the most important evidence was the surveillance camera recordings. All they had to do was take the recording devices and tapes, and that's how they would get rid of them, because at that time, in 1997, there was no cloud storage or Wi-Fi to save a copy online. All recordings were on tapes, so if they got rid of the tapes, all recordings were gone. So literally, they took the entire recording device with them, the device that was in the surveillance room that contained the screens. But there was a second recording device hidden in one of the offices in the building. And of course, any other thieves would have been impossible to know about this backup device. But once again, since Tamiko, Allen's girlfriend, was literally in charge of these devices, she knew all these secrets and told Allen the location of the second device. And indeed, Allen went to this office, got the device, and took it. And so, the thieves took the recording devices and tapes with them and left no trace behind.
The Difficult Escape: The Supervisor's Car as a Space Solution
The next step was to tamper with the door lock. If you remember, they entered through the door using Allen's key. To prevent the police from discovering that they had entered with a key, they tampered with the door lock to make it look broken, which was supposed to divert suspicion away from Allen even more. So now that they had finished everything, it was time to escape. But there was a problem in front of them due to the huge amount of money they had loaded into the truck. There was no room left for all of them. Two of them couldn't find a place to ride. Their plan was for them all to ride in the truck, and then they would drop Allen and Eugene off at the sedan they had parked nearby. But the success of their operation was greater than expected.
End of the Escape: Returning to the Party as an Alibi
Now, what's the solution? Should they unload some bags from the truck to make room for the remaining two? This is supposed to be the most logical solution. But Allen said: "No, we will not give up any of our spoils." And he closed the truck door and told the four to go, and he and Eugene remained alone. But Allen had an idea. Do you remember the pickup truck that was parked outside, the supervisor's car? Allen simply decided to take it. So he went to the supervisor, who was tied up, and took the car key from his pocket. He and his friend Eugene took the pickup and left the place. Of course, they wouldn't take this car with them because it could be evidence against them, and the police might track them through it. All they wanted was to reach their sedan, which was parked near the building, so they switched cars and left the supervisor's car there in the same parking lot. And so the escape was successful.
Police Announce the Robbery and Its Huge Amount
But the operation as a whole was not yet over. The last part was for them to return to the party they had left, the party that would be their alibi. So after leaving, they immediately went to Eugene's house, put their weapons in the house, changed their clothes, and put back on the clothes they had been wearing for the party. And they left again in the truck and the car and went to the party location. And the money was still in the truck. They arrived back at the party at around 1:30 AM, about 90 minutes after they had left. And when they went down to the party, they parked the truck in front of the house, the truck that literally contained tens of millions, and entered the party again and mingled with the people.
Beginning of the Investigation: The Broken Door Lock and the Plastic Piece
About an hour after the gang left the Dunbar center, the employees finally managed to free themselves, and they immediately called the police. The police arrived, along with the FBI, of course, and began investigating what had happened. The first thing investigators noticed when they started examining the scene was that the external door lock was broken. But after examining it, they felt it was merely a camouflage and cover-up. They did not see signs of forced entry on the door; they only saw the lock broken. And this was a mistake by Allen and his friends, because now the investigators suspected that the thieves had a key to the door, which meant a high probability that this operation was carried out by insiders, people who worked in the place. And the second trace the investigators found was the plastic piece that broke off the truck's light when the driver hit the side of the wall while entering the truck. This plastic piece did not match any of the company's trucks, which meant it most likely came from the gang's truck. This is all the investigators were able to obtain. The place was clean; the thieves left no trace behind.
The Stolen Millions: America's Largest Cash Heist
As for Allen and his friends, they rented a small storage unit to put the money in until things calmed down and they could divide the loot comfortably. Dunbar's management estimated the missing amount and determined that the figure stolen by the gang amounted to $19 million. And imagine that this amount, in today's value, is almost $30 million, so this was undoubtedly, at the time, the largest cash robbery in American history, and most likely the entire world. After that, of course, larger robberies would occur, such as the Brazilian bank robbery. Imagine also that most of this stolen amount consisted of twenty-dollar bills, so the amount of money was huge, which is why the truck filled up quickly.
Authorities' Fear of Imitation and Concealing the True Amount
Imagine also that due to the size of the stolen amount, security authorities feared attempts at imitation. They were afraid that imitators would appear and try to carry out similar robberies of cash distribution centers. In order not to face this problem, they decided to not announce the true figure. All they told the media was that an amount of over a million dollars was stolen from the Dunbar center, and they did not disclose the true amount.
Investigation Focuses on Allen Pace and His Girlfriend Tamiko
After the investigators began to scrutinize the details of the case, they felt that all evidence indicated that it was an inside job, meaning that one or more of the people who carried out the operation worked at this place. This is because the thieves' knowledge of the location of the recording devices, especially the second recording device that was hidden in one of the offices, indicates this. How did the thieves know about this device if they or someone they knew didn't work there? In addition, the story of the broken lock, which they felt was merely a cover-up for the thieves' use of a real key to enter. So what the investigators did was interview all the employees at this center. Imagine that they interviewed about 130 people, both current employees and those who had been fired recently. And during the interrogation, they administered a lie detector test. They used a device that measures heart rate, and only two people failed this test: Allen and his girlfriend Tamiko.
Employee Testimony and Additional Evidence Against Allen
And after that, there was additional evidence against Allen. Do you remember the employee whose shoulder was hurt when they forced her to lie on the ground? Allen told her: "Don't be afraid, my dear, everything will be fine." This employee recognized Allen's voice and manner of speaking, so she was one of the people who testified against him. So now there were two pieces of evidence against Allen: his failure on the lie detector test, and the employee's testimony. So the company management expected that the police would arrest him, but the investigators knew that this evidence was not enough. There was no conclusive evidence that could incriminate Allen and prove the charge against him, so what they had was not enough for an arrest.
Investigation Difficulties: A Full Year with No New Leads and a Huge Reward
And even though the investigators' focus during that period was on Allen, they eventually failed to obtain conclusive evidence against him. And imagine that a full year passed and the case remained open with no new developments, even though several government agencies participated in the case, led by the Los Angeles Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and even the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which is considered the most powerful financial authority in America, and tracking money is literally their job. But all the efforts of these agencies failed. To the extent that they finally decided to offer a huge reward of $250,000 to anyone who provided information leading to the identification of the perpetrators of the operation.
Allen's Clever Money Laundering and the Gang's Disappearance
The reason for the difficulties faced by the investigators and the authorities who tried to track the stolen money was Allen's intelligence. Even after the operation, when Allen distributed the money to his friends, he explained to them that this money was dangerous and they had to be careful in spending it. The stupidest thing they could do was to go and buy luxurious cars or mansions or even, for example, go on tourist trips around the world. All these things could draw attention to them. So, they had to be smart and not spend this money except in small amounts as needed, especially during the current period when the investigation into the case was still strongly underway.
Commercial Front: An Entertainment Business for Money Laundering
One of the smart things Allen also did was that he opened a business specializing in entertainment. This project was a front for laundering their money, so they could use it more comfortably. For those who don't know how money laundering works, simply put, they take the money they stole and register it as money they received from their business, from their work, as profits, and they even pay taxes on this money. And so, the money becomes as if it were legitimate in the eyes of the law. This is money laundering in short. Of course, even money laundering must be done carefully and slowly. They cannot suddenly bring in millions from their business. Rather, they launder tens of thousands each month, for example, then they can reach 100 thousand, 200 thousand, but they cannot reach millions. If they reach millions immediately, they will draw attention to themselves. So the process was slow but most importantly, it was safe. And because of this caution, the gang remained hidden from view for two full years. Two years and the investigators were unable to catch them by any means. And Allen and his friends thought they had escaped the clutches of the law.
Eugene's Slip-Up: Dunbar Tapes Expose the Robbery
But unfortunately, one of them would become complacent and drop his guard, which would cost them all. This one was none other than Eugene, Allen's closest friend and the first one he brought into the team. Eugene felt, after all this time, that they had gotten away with it, so he took $100,000 in cash from the loot and went to a real estate office to buy land as an investment. Not only that, but the money bundles were still tied with Dunbar company tapes, meaning it was a stupid mistake in every sense of the word. Eugene didn't even expect the real estate agent to suspect the money; he thought the case had been forgotten after two years. But the real estate agent, upon seeing the money, alarm bells went off in his head. But he didn't show any suspicion to Eugene; he knew there was a $250,000 reward for the person who identified the thieves. So the agent gave Eugene the land purchase papers and made him sign them, and completed the transaction as if nothing had happened. The agent took the money, and immediately after Eugene left, he called the police.
Eugene Exposes Gang Secrets Under Interrogation Pressure
So the investigators arrived with employees from Dunbar to examine the money. And after the examination, they confirmed that the tapes on the money indeed belonged to the day of the robbery, because these tapes were stamped with small dates. And the dates on these tapes went back to September 11 and 12, 1997, the day the money was stolen. So now, all eyes of the investigators were on Eugene, and they even began searching and investigating the people around him, his relatives and friends, and quickly discovered that he was a friend of Allen, whom they had suspected from the beginning. So they had a small list of suspects.
Conclusive Evidence: Truck Rental and Eugene's Call
Notice also, when they reviewed Eugene's financial movements, that Eugene was writing checks from his sister's bank account, and his sister did not have enough income to write such checks, so this was additional evidence that this was also money laundering. But the conclusive evidence would come from this red piece, the plastic piece that broke off the truck's light on the day of the robbery. The investigators knew that this piece came from a rented truck most likely, and they were able to identify the type and model of the truck. So they collected rental records from all the stores and companies that rented such trucks in the area. And of course, these records were all paper, and they couldn't search on the computer with a single click as is the case now. So the investigators sat for a while reviewing all these records and comparing them to the list of suspects they had. And if you remember, I told you earlier that the one who rented the truck was Eugene himself, and he rented it with his driver's license. So the investigators, while searching the rental records, found his name. And after that, according to the rental agreement, he rented the truck on September 12, the day of the operation, and returned it on the 13th, the next day. And so, the evidence against Eugene became clear and conclusive. And immediately after that, the investigators went to his home and arrested him and took him to the station for interrogation.
The Bitter End: Conviction of Allen and His Accomplices and Years in Prison
And even though the gang had agreed that if one of them was caught, he should not speak and not tell the investigators anything, and that his friends would take care of his family, talking is one thing and acting is another when you are actually under the pressure of investigation and interrogation. The investigators told Eugene that if he did not confess and reveal the details of the operation and expose his friends, his sister would be implicated with him because Eugene was writing checks from her bank account, so she would be implicated and become accused of cooperating with him in money laundering and theft, and these are not simple charges at all. So now, Eugene was faced with a difficult choice, but in the end, for him, family comes before friends. And indeed, Eugene confessed to everything. He confessed to his role in the operation, revealed how they carried it out, and exposed the identities of all his friends.
Millionaires After Prison: $12 Million Still Missing
After that, investigations continued for several months, and during these months, all six were arrested. After a period, they were tried on charges of theft and money laundering. All of Allen's friends turned against him and pointed fingers, testifying in court that he was the mastermind behind the operation and the one who convinced them to participate with him. And indeed, this is what happened. So Allen, as the leader and planner of the operation, received the harshest sentence; he was sentenced to 24 years in prison. As for his friends, they received much lighter sentences, ranging from 10 to 12 years. I am sure that the biggest regret Allen felt was his regret for bringing his friend Eugene into the fold. Eugene was his best friend and the first person he brought into the operation. But this dearest friend turned out to be the stupidest one in the team, and his foolish mistake when he took the money to the real estate office was what exposed them. But there is a bright side for them: the FBI was only able to recover seven million of the $19 million that was stolen. Meaning that $12 million is still missing. And all the gang members served their sentences and were released from prison, the last of them being Allen, who is supposed to have been released last year. And this remaining money, the $12 million that the FBI did not find, is most likely still in their possession, God knows where they hid it. So despite the long years they spent in prison, they at least came out knowing they were millionaires.
sources:
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Details of the robbery: Precise information about the 1997 Dunbar armored robbery in Los Angeles at a cash distribution center.
Check the overview here: Dunbar Armored Robbery - Wikipedia -
Heist planning and execution: Explanation of how six insiders with clean records meticulously planned the theft.
More details in this analysis: Dunbar Armored Robbery - Crime Museum -
Critical mistake and evidence: How a plastic tail light lens led to their capture.
Read about the key evidence here: History Channel - Dunbar Heist Facts -
Arrests and sentencing: How the perpetrators were caught and their sentences.
Detailed info here: LA Times Archive on Dunbar Heist