$1.5M in iPad minis stolen from JFK airport in 'GoodFellas' style heist

Posted:
in iPad edited January 2014
A pair of thieves stole $1.5 million worth of Apple iPad minis from a building at New York's JFK airport that was also the site of a famous robbery in 1978.

Heist


Details of the valuable heist were revealed on Thursday by the New York Post. About 3,600 iPad minis that had just arrived from China were taken from one of the airport's cargo buildings.

That same building was the site of the 1978 Lufthansa heist in which $5 million in cash and $875,000 worth of jewelry were stolen ? the largest cash robbery to ever occur on U.S. soil. That heist was featured in the 1990 film "GoodFellas" starring Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci.

The incident occurred this Monday, just before midnight, when a pair of thieves reportedly used one of the airport's own forklifts to steal two pallets of iPad minis. Not all of the shipments were placed on the truck, as the arrival of an airport worker allegedly forced the duo to leave three pallets behind.

Because the thieves arrived with an official JFK forklift, it's been speculated that an airport employee may have let them into the area near Building 261 around 11 p.m., and also let them out after the iPad minis were stolen.

Apple's iPad mini has a starting price of $329 for a 16-gigabyte Wi-Fi-only model. The most expensive option is the 64-gigabyte version with cellular data, which sells for $659.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 79
    Explains the 2 week delivery time
  • Reply 2 of 79
    Just wait till Apple turns on find my Mini
  • Reply 3 of 79
    solipsismxsolipsismx Posts: 19,566member
    1) This explains the new delivery times of 5 to 10 with good behavior.

    2) How many MS Surface's have been stolen to date?

    That same building was the site of the 1978 Lufthansa heist in which $5 million in cash and $875,000 worth of jewelry were stolen, the largest cash robbery to ever occur on U.S. soil. That heist was featured in the 1990 film "GoodFellas" starring Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci.

    I would argue that Berne Maddof, subprime market loans, and Super PACs would far outweigh that paltry $5 million robbery.
  • Reply 4 of 79
    Obligatory - "Why didn't they steal [fill in android tablet name]?"
  • Reply 5 of 79


    Originally Posted by SolipsismX View Post

    2) How many MS Surface's have been stolen to date?


     


    Is it already on sale? 


     


    I suppose that question answers more than it asks, huh. image

  • Reply 6 of 79
    Am I wrong or are these Minis useless to anybody that tries to register them? I assume that all of the serial numbers are know and that if that number comes up somewhere at registration time it won't work? Rendering them so much dead weight?
  • Reply 7 of 79
    Anyone checked the Craigs List lately?
  • Reply 8 of 79

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by SolipsismX View Post



    2) How many MS Surface's have been stolen to date?


     


    Ballmer has just envisioned his new business plan...


     


    Have millions of Surface tablets stolen. Voila! Millions sold!

  • Reply 9 of 79
    tmallon wrote: »
    Just wait till Apple turns on find my Mini
    Can't. That system has to be set up on a powered on device before it is lost.

    It is unlikely Apple knows the serials in those crates so the best that might happen is if someone takes one in for service tht system will show it was never bought through a valid retailer and ask for proof of purchase to correct the computer error.
  • Reply 10 of 79
    jragostajragosta Posts: 10,473member
    massconn72 wrote: »
    Am I wrong or are these Minis useless to anybody that tries to register them? I assume that all of the serial numbers are know and that if that number comes up somewhere at registration time it won't work? Rendering them so much dead weight?

    No. You can still use a device like this without registering it.
  • Reply 11 of 79
    Do not buy from unauthorized sellers. Craigslist and eBay is about to have a lot of new iPad Minis for sale. If you buy one of these--even if you're unaware it was stolen--you're part of the problem.
  • Reply 12 of 79


    Of course, Apple knows the serial numbers of all the devices stolen. These are not cans of green beans. 

  • Reply 13 of 79


    Originally Posted by Satorical View Post

    If you buy one of these--even if you're unaware it was stolen--you're part of the problem.


     


    "Don't go to a garage sale; you don't know if it's stolen."


     


    No, they're not "part of the problem".

  • Reply 14 of 79


    i'd rather be a bad somebody with minis, than a good nobody with nexuses. 

  • Reply 15 of 79
    rob55rob55 Posts: 1,291member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post





    No. You can still use a device like this without registering it.


     


    But you still have to connect it to iTunes, no? And if you plan on using any apps on it, I imagine that the serial # will be transmitted to Apple. At least that's how I thought it worked. Never paid it much mind to be honest.

     

  • Reply 16 of 79
    Apple surely knows the S/N. I mean, suppose you have millions of devices, wouldn't you make sure you know which is where? 'f course you would.

    Da Boss is "an operational genius" who can cook up a logistic dream machine, given some tim.


    Also, the Mac laptops have an onboard chip that allows protecting the computer against theft by preventing reinstallation of the system. Combined with a secure password and automatic lock of the computer, it makes for a very secure platform (provided you don't ignore the feature and/or set your machine to no-password,autologin). If Apple provides these, I'd expect they also are capable of tracking mere unsold machines through their logistic chain...
  • Reply 17 of 79
    andysolandysol Posts: 2,506member


    So they were close to getting $3.75 Million worth of minis.  Wow.


     


    Now go and get your shine box 

  • Reply 18 of 79
    rob55rob55 Posts: 1,291member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


     


    "Don't go to a garage sale; you don't know if it's stolen."


     


    No, they're not "part of the problem".



     


    Technically, they'd be in possession of stolen property.

  • Reply 19 of 79
    andysolandysol Posts: 2,506member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rob55 View Post


     


    Technically, they'd be in possession of stolen property.



    Ya- but not guilty.  So that's a risk you can take- but TS is right- you aren't part of the problem.  I, for one, prefer to buy some iDevices off Craigslist that are a few months old and people need the cash.  If it's new- all the better.  Got a 4S about 8 months ago for $375 brand new- lady had the receipt (but that wouldn't have been a deal killer) and used her upgrade because she needed cash.  Some people are desperate... might as well take advantage of it.


     


    Side note: if anyone hasn't seen Goodfellas... Its a top 10 guy movie of all time.

  • Reply 20 of 79
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Rob55 View Post




    Quote:

    Originally Posted by jragosta View Post





    No. You can still use a device like this without registering it.


     


    But you still have to connect it to iTunes, no? And if you plan on using any apps on it, I imagine that the serial # will be transmitted to Apple. At least that's how I thought it worked. Never paid it much mind to be honest.

     



    I suspect that Apple could detect the MAC address of the device and know that it was stolen however I also doubt they would do anything about it. Most of the people who end up with these devices are not the ones involved in the heist so Apple will just sell them apps and media and let them enjoy their iPad mini regardless. The robbers will in all likelihood be apprehended eventually.

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