Stolen Cards Returned - More Detailed Info

[Archive]

Posted By: Robert Edward Auctions LLC

The vintage cards that were stolen approximately three weeks ago from the Evanston, Illinois home of one of the hobby’s pioneers have been turned over to the police and are in hand. About three weeks ago Robert Edward Auctions fielded a call regarding a collection of cards that did not precisely match the reported stolen inventory list but which had cards from some of the same issues in common. Something did not feel right about the call – a combination of factors including certain statements related to how and when these cards were collected by the caller, and discussions regarding cards in general. There was no smoking gun but a few red flags and I could not help but think that there was something that was not right. Trying to get contact information at this point was very challenging – another red flag - but I finally got an address to send a sample catalog (this was like pulling a tooth). The address was in Evanston, Illinois. Bingo. The fact that the collection did not perfectly match the stolen collection inventory was certainly of concern – we didn’t want to jeopardize a perfectly legitimate consignment – but my thinking was that the inventory of the cards being communicated by the would-be consignor could easily be off (possibly to intentionally camouflage the collection) and also, having seen the stolen collection in question years ago (I know the collector whose collection was stolen and have visited with him) I did not believe that the inventory of the stolen collection that was circulating was 100% accurate. Our first call was immediately to the victim to discuss exactly what was stolen and to compare this information with the inventory of the cards being offered to REA for consignment. The victim is somewhat elderly, and as I listed various groups of cards it quickly became very apparent that he did not have a firm idea of what cards exactly that he had. This was a potential problem. We then contacted the Evanston, Illinois detective in charge of this case to discuss our suspicions regarding our recent contact. Working with the police we followed their instructions and planned for various contingencies. It can be very difficult to pursue the retrieval of stolen property based on a third party’s intuition – they don’t exactly issue search warrants in such cases - but the more the detective heard the more he was convinced these were the cards. Initial police contacts with the person who had the possibly-stolen cards were not successful but later communications resulted in the person bringing the entire collection in, turning it over to the police, admitting that they were not collected by him and were very recently purchased locally, and making a formal statement. It is my understanding that he purchased the cards for a modest sum with the intention of making a profit and that there is no reason to doubt this (Note: To me he claimed to have collected the cards over the past twenty years. Though he had done his homework and talked a very good game, it is just not that easy – maybe impossible - to fool someone that is very knowledgeable about cards and the business. I work with cards and collectors everyday. If something isn’t right, I can usually tell.) The post-recovery twist in the case is that the cards were then brought to the victim, who looked at the collection and declared that the cards were not in the condition of his cards, that all of his cards were perfect and that these were not, and therefore these were not his cards. Collectors often think their cards are better than they remember, and it may have been twenty years since the victim actually looked at the cards that were not in binders. When you’re 88 years old, one’s memory can sometimes not be perfect. Having actually seen his collection years ago, I know that while many were in very high grade, many were not. The cards he personally collected tended to be in high grade (this included most issued from the 1930s up) but those that he did not personally collect at the time of issue (which include the mostly 1910 to 1920 era cards, which he did not collect at the time of issue and which he had to buy or trade for like any other collector) were not necessarily in the same high grade. In addition to several specific rare card issues in the collection being the very same as those stolen, the returned collection included postcards addressed to the victim, so there is absolutely no question that these cards represent the victim’s stolen collection. According to the detective in charge of the case, he believes that the cards in hand represent the entire balance of the collection, though I personally do not have enough information to verify this. The police are currently deciding how to approach the situation, and are very pleased that a combination of factors, including luck and the ultimate cooperation of the buyer of the stolen collection, allowed a “bulls-eye” in identifying the whereabouts of the collection and facilitating its return. It has been an honor for us to play a small role in helping to locate and bring about the return of some or all of the extremely valuable card collection which was recently stolen from the home one of card collecting’s great pioneers.

Sincerely,

Robert Lifson
President
Robert Edward Auctions LLC
www.RobertEdwardAuctions.com