What are some really famous diamond thefts?

In order for diamond thefts to be successful, the thieves must be very clever – both in the movies and in real life. Diamonds and diamond jewelry are protected by very sophisticated security mechanisms which are extremely difficult to bypass. One famous diamond theft took place at Damiani Jewelers in Milan, Italy in February 2008. When a lady in Milan called the police about disturbing noises in her area, police thought nothing of it due to the construction in close proximity to her residence. The fact that she lived near the showroom of Damiani Jewelers didn't seem to cross anyone's mind, which is quite a shame because it wasn't long before diamond thieves broke into the showroom. Police investigations later revealed that preparation for the diamond theft began around Christmas time, with the robbers using the construction work near Damiani to their advantage. 7 diamond thieves broke into the seemingly secure building, complete with a fancy alarm system and an armed security guard. The diamond thieves managed to enter the building by drilling a hole in a wall each morning for several months. Apparently, there was a thick wall (4 ft) between the Damiani showroom cellar and the basement right next door. When they made it into Damiani, the diamond thieves got to the jewelry showroom via the internal staircase, careful to steer clear of security cameras. Only 5 people comprised the Damiani staff on the night of the diamond theft. They stated that the thieves were dressed in Italian tax police uniforms and insisted on viewing the company's financial records. Shortly thereafter, the diamond thieves were binding the staff with cables and tape. All the staff members were binded and taken to the bathroom, except for the manager who was forced to take them to the company safe. The diamond thieves managed to escape before anyone was able to sound the alarm. The timing for the diamond theft was pretty good, but it could have been better for the thieves… On the one hand, there weren't any customers around since Damiani Jewelers were setting up for an exclusive presentation so there were just the right people present to open the vault. On the other hand, a lot of particularly expensive pieces of jewelry were not at the showroom during the diamond theft due to the Oscar ceremony. Some of the pieces of jewelry on loan to Hollywood stars at the time of the diamond theft were the Sahara Bracelet, a spectacular forty-seven carat diamond bracelet with over a thousand diamonds and the Mimosa Ring, a dazzling diamond ring weighing over four carats. Nonetheless, the diamond theft scored the thieves about twenty million dollars worth of diamond jewelry (not bad for a night's work!).

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The biggest, and probably the most famous diamond heist in history took place in Antwerp, Belgium in the year 2003. Antwerp is among the top diamond capitals on the globe, so of course their diamond district is secured with excellent security, making it almost impossible to commit a diamond theft. At the time of the heist, the Antwerp Diamond Center had one hundred and sixty vaults where diamond professionals kept their diamonds. At this famous diamond heist, over 3/4 of the vaults were robbed by 4 diamond thieves who had prepared for the big event for over 2 years. They were so dedicated to their task that they rented an office in the building, studied the alarm system and how to get past it, lifted the vault keys and duplicated them. The diamond thieves even recorded over the closed circuit security cameras. Although they were eventually seized by the police in Antwerp, the loot from this incredible diamond heist was never found. How much did they get away with you ask? One hundred million dollars worth of diamonds! Though the stolen diamonds still haven't turned up, the diamond thieves were imprisoned due to circumstantial evidence.

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