Biggest heists in the world that you shouldn’t miss

Updated on August 27, 2022 16:57 PM by Anthony Christian

We have such a strange history of idolizing criminal brains. Even those thieves and robbers who don't share their wealth with the underprivileged still seem to attain the admiration of fans who keep on living vicariously through their brave escapades.

With the advancement in technology and security came the criminal astuteness, which tries to conquer hidden treasure. Robbing a bank is an all-time favorite method for thieves and robbers who never wish to work again in their recent birth.

Granted, it is a very extreme method. Its success depends only on one factor, whether you get caught or not. But, in the end, most of the robbers find themselves behind bars.

History made us learn this a very hard way regardless of the size of the trap; there is always a mouse ready to take away the cheese.

Millenium Dome Raid

It was in the year 2000, and London was finally done with constructing the disastrous waste of money called the Millenium Dome. There was also a world-class Diamond exhibited among its plenty of displays.

It was a flawless 203-carat precious stone having a valuation of $250 million. The robbers planned a fiery collision and grab a job, coming in guns blazing and going away in a speedboat waiting for them.

However, their plan was thwarted as London's metropolitan police already had them under its surveillance for some bulletproof car robberies. The robbers were arrested on the site.

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Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Heist

In 1990, when the whole of Boston was busy celebrating St. Patrick's day by gulping beer and smack-talking the Yankees, two thieves dressed up in the uniform of Boston police officers.

These thieves entered the museum and stole 13 excellent works of art. The stolen works included Rembrandt, Manet, and some by Degas. The total estimated cost of them all was $500 million.

Empty frames still hung in the room in honor of the missing pieces, hoping they would return someday. This is among the greatest mysteries in the history of American crime.

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The Collar Bomb Bank Robbery

This one will seem familiar to everyone who has seen 30 Minutes or Less, but unfortunately, the real story is much more tragic. In 2003, a middle-aged pizza delivery boy entered a bank, gave the teller a note demanding the money kept in the vault – and lifted his shirt to show a collar bomb circling his neck and chest.

After he stole the money, the robber went 15 minutes away when the state troopers arrested him.

The robber began shouting that he was forced into the robbery and the bomb was about to go off. The cops surrounded that area and started waiting for the disposal squad to come on the site, but before the squad could get there, the bomb began beeping and sadly blew up.

The story takes a strange turn from here that includes an FBI investigation, a lengthy paper series of clues, and several dead bodies found in freezers.

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$6 billion in US tax stolen in Iraq

During the post-mess of Saddam Hussein – with the former Iraqi military, private security contractors, and the American army, everyone fighting to gain control of that region – someone took away more than 600 billion dollars of money that Congress dumped on that country.

Stuart Bowen, the special inspector general for the reconstruction of Iraq, admitted that he couldn't count on that money. He called it the 'largest theft of funds in national history.

The weird quantity, no conclusions found after investigations, and how everyone looked like they forgot about the massive amount make it the largest and strongest.

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The French Bank Vault Tunnelers

A group of robbers 2010 used unknown and sophisticated tools to build an underground tunnel into the vaults of a Persian bank – where the robbers proceeded to rob more than 100 safety deposit boxes.

The worth of stolen boxes is unknown because rich clients were too confidential to manage their containers. The same type of crime occurred months before this one to the North of that city. More than 100 boxes were also stolen, making the same mischievous group the main suspect.

Great Train Robbery

In 1963, 2.3 million pounds (currently $40 million) were robbed from a post office train in England. The 15-member team successfully pulled off the caper without using a single gun.

The money the team robbed was taken to burn, and the robbers would have escaped with it – if they had not been playing the monopoly game in a barn using all the robbed cash and leaving their fingerprints everywhere in that place.

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D.B. Cooper

This one is a favorite of conspiracy theorists. D.B. Cooper was the only one in the history of America who did an unsolved air piracy act.

In 1973, an unknown man, known only by his common nickname – had the guts to hijack a Boeing 727. He exhorted a massive $200,000 and then jumped off the plane mid-air with money between Portland and Seattle.

Despite searching for years, and FBI investigation, neither the money nor the body has been found yet. The assumption and probability are Cooper parachuted to an unknown destination. However, his case is still active at the Bureau even after four decades and has piled up 60 volumes of theories.

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Vestaberga Helicopter Robbery

Otherwise easygoing Sweden police force had to become an incredibly organized group of brave criminals in 2009. It was Sweden's first-ever helicopter robbery.

The group of robbers used a stolen helicopter and landed on the cash depot building's roof. Next, they used sledgehammers to break the glass, blew through the security doors with the help of explosives, and robbed the cash store vaults.

The robbers took away the bags of money while escaping. Police cars headed towards the spot had their tires blown away by the caltrops, which the robbers had thrown all over the roads.

All the robbers who were caught were imprisoned for only seven years. So, for anyone who wants to brush up on their criminal skills, Sweden is a haven for you.

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Thomas Blood and the Crown Jewels of England

It was in 1671! One fine day, Thomas Blood was an Irish Assassin who decided his hands at robbery. He had a humble target – just the crown jewels of England.

These were kept at the Tower of London, and guards always surrounded it. Blood's plan had a fake title, costumes, a fake wife (a prostitute), and a fake nephew who was to marry the daughter of the keeper of Jewels named Talbot Edward.

After he secured a private viewing, the trio knocked Edward out, shattered the Jewels using hammers, and stuffed everything in their pants to make a run for it.

Though, they couldn't go too far, with various guards reportedly handling them off their horses. However, Blood lucked out because the attempt greatly entertained King Charles II. Blood was pardoned!

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