A meticulously planned theft at the Dallas Card Show resulted in the loss of vintage sports cards worth an estimated $2 million. The heist, captured on video, involved four men working in concert to pull off the audacious crime.
The footage, shared on social media by Ashish Jain, owner of Legacy Cardz, shows three men distracting the staff while a fourth individual steals a briefcase. Jain revealed that the briefcase contained exceptionally valuable baseball cards, including rare pieces featuring legends Jackie Robinson and Mickey Mantle. Despite the staggering value of the stolen items, Jain is offering a $70,000 reward for information leading to the recovery of the memorabilia.
Jain emphasized the sophistication of the thieves, stating they specifically targeted the briefcase containing the most valuable cards. “It was the one with all the meat,” he remarked to sports business reporter Darren Rovell.
The theft occurred at the semi-regular Dallas Card Show held at a hotel in Allen, Texas. Allen police are actively investigating what Jain described as a “predetermined and targeted” crime. Law enforcement officials told The New York Times that this incident is the largest theft ever recorded at the Dallas Card Show.
Among the stolen items, the most prized card was a 1952 Mickey Mantle card valued at $175,000. According to Rovell, there were also half a dozen Mantle cards totaling $400,000 in value.
Jain noted on X (formerly Twitter) that video evidence shows the thieves stacking chairs by his booth, leading him to suspect they posed as employees. “These guys had been scoping us out all day,” he wrote, adding that they even went through a process of changing clothes to avoid detection.
The Dallas Card Show heist has sent shockwaves through the collector community, highlighting the vulnerabilities and high stakes involved in the world of rare sports memorabilia.