STOLEN 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle from recent National Convention

[danmckee]

You can move this to the post-war section if you like or place it in all of the boards, the more exposure the better.

"1952 topps Mickey Mantle Psa 4 card serial number 40427314 stolen at the National from Jeff Foy, known as cardcountry. Took the card right from his table at the National."

This has been posted on the CU boards but let's get the word out so that the scumbag thief cannot sell this card!

Also please notify your advertisers that are auction houses Leon, that would be a huge help!

Thanks for your cooperation

Dan Mckee

[insccollectibles]

That's so messed up. I will keep an eye out as a victim of a recent theft I know the helpless empty feeling.

[bigwinnerx]

So, going one step ahead of this thug, he probably tries to crack it and sell it raw since the PSA # will be easily traced.

In that case, time to note any significant marks on the card. The dot on the left border. The top and bottom left corners. Matched with the OC shift left on the back.

[ullmandds]

yes...also note the possibly trimmed lower rt corner!

[christopher.herman]

Originally Posted by bigwinnerx

So, going one step ahead of this thug, he probably tries to crack it and sell it raw since the PSA # will be easily traced.

In that case, time to note any significant marks on the card. The dot on the left border. The top and bottom left corners. Matched with the OC shift left on the back.

I was thinking the same thing. At the very least that card will never grade a 4 again.

[Rich Klein]

the rumours I heard say 3 52 Topps Mantles, of which this was the best one, were stolen during the show.

Rich

[e107collector]

Originally Posted by ullmandds

yes...also note the possibly trimmed lower rt corner!

Pete,

Good eye, it looks like it may be trimmed.

Hopefully, they will catch the thieves. Also, wasn't there a SGC 20 1952 topps Mantle stolen as well? Anyone have a pic of that?

Tony

[Taxman]

Originally Posted by ullmandds

yes...also note the possibly trimmed lower rt corner!

I doubt the card is trimmed. It appears the PSA logo in the bottom right corner is causing the card to appear short.

[ullmandds]

not that the point of this thread is to argue trim or not...but despite the psa logo...the cut looks funky to me. this will make this card easier to identify.

[pawpawdiv9]

We already discussed this in the Post-war section
Here the thread: http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=173396
This is just aweful to hear..I just received mine yesterday from Goldin and i was praying like heck it get here o.k.
Man, this is a prized possession, i would never let the card out of my sight.

[vintagecpa]

No video surveillance in the arena? In the world we live in, you would think there must be some video to put a face to the crime.

[danmckee]

When we were robbed in Anaheim in 1991 at the National, they removed our entire show cases over night. Supposed armed off duty police were the security 24 hours a day. When the investigator showed up, he immediately asked for the film out of the cameras and they were all empty!

I would love to catch someone stealing from me again, I will beat $250K that we lost in 1991 out of them!

Dan Mckee

[rainier2004]

Originally Posted by vintagecpa

No video surveillance in the arena? In the world we live in, you would think there must be some video to put a face to the crime.

I don't think there are any cameras in the place. Security always seems to be very questionable at the National. I always said I would walk the floors patrolling for FREE if they gave me a walkie that spoke to an officer and Id spend all day looking for thieves...I do not see ANY deterrent for thieves at the show.

Thanks for posting the info, hopefully this d-bag gets caught

[danmckee]

I also think it is good that this topic is on this board in multiple sections as the more people that know, the better.

[teetwoohsix]

Chipping on front top left and bottom left corner also, as an identifier. Sorry to hear about this, hope the card is discovered and returned to owner.

Sincerely, Clayton

*edit-just read Mike already pointed that out.

[T205 GB]

I will be posting later tonight after work. I want to share some stuff with the board and get feedback.

I hope these cards find their way home.

[rdwyer]

When I first read this post, I thought someone distracted a seller somehow and stole the card that way. But with 3 cards stolen, it sounds more like security was the ones who stole them. Cameras are needed. But they should be recording 24 hours a day.

[Cardboard Junkie]

Was it insured?

[MGHPro]

It seems like each year there are more and more robberies at the show. I was robbed in Cleveland and there were a bunch of other items stolen at the show. Last year, we had a friend get robbed for a high end item. And then you start hearing about other robberies at the show. We were told there was a ring of professionals going around the show doing these robberies.. Since its known you would think they would really step up security .. maybe some real police in plain clothes? lots of cameras in the show and outside the show? And maybe- and yes it seems extreme- but lock the show down when you find out a high end item was stolen. My item was over 10k, the other persons item was over 40k and the mantles are far from cheap. Then when you hear about after show hour theft, it just makes things 1000x worse.
In regards to insurance, my claim was covered but then we were dropped by the insurance company that we had used for over 10 years and never made another claim with. Good luck to the people who had losses at the show.
Matt

[Ease]

In my wandering around the show floor, it did occur to me how easily a thief or group of thieves could make off with some high $ stuff. At certain times there was so much commotion around some tables that there's no way the dealer(s) could keep an eye on everyone. Best bet I think for dealers is to keep all of the bigger $ cards locked in the big rectangular display cases, it would be difficult to have enough cameras setup to see everything clearly.

[HOF Auto Rookies]

Would it help contacting the grading companies and giving them high-res scans of the stolen cards, so if they are attempted to be submitted then can recognize the card(s) and get them back to the owner(s)?

I'm sorry if someone mentioned this, I hadn't read thru every post yet

[Jewish-collector]

A California dealer had a 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth in PSA 1 stolen at the show also. He said he thinks someone opened the case while he was distracted. He said he meant to get the locked cases, but hadn't ordered them yet.

[canjond]

A friend also had this card stolen from his case at the National...

[Sterling Sports Auctions]

I was near the table when security came by to explain to Jeff that they could not see anything on the surveillance cameras because of the back drop from near by areas blocked their space.

Seems like you should have been able to get something off that time period in the area, but that is what I heard. In the end it really sucks and hopefully they find the culprits.

Lee

[the 'stache]

I am seeing a slight wrinkle, or a scratch, on the front surface, upper right hand corner, a few centimeters in length, slanting from upper left to lower right. Is that a scratch on the slab, or actually a blemish on the card? Because if it's on the card, that, coupled with the dot on the left border, is going to make this card pretty much instantly recognizable.

BTW, there was a discussion about this on Sports Card Forum as well.

I posted scans of Jeff's card, front and back, and a link back to his initial post on the CU boards.

[drcy]

For a hopeful real story, a guy had his Mel Ott game used bat stolen from the PSA booth at last year's National, and, while it took some time, he got it back. He said he thought spreading the word (and photos) around the hobby helped his cause, because whomever took it simply, though anonymously, returned it. May be the thief figured it would be too problematic to try and resell it.

[itjclarke]

I was of the mind that visible flaws could be matched from hi res scans of the card, but then it occurred to me that the thief can decide to further deface/damage the card any way he so chooses. Seems like no one would want to intentionally devalue a card, but for his purposes he may decide to add a corner crease or two. A recognizable PSA 4 '52 Mantle is probably worth less to him than a less recognizable 2. Regardless, this really sucks and I feel for the dealers. Hope their cards are returned somehow.

[HOF Auto Rookies]

Originally Posted by itjclarke

I was of the mind that visible flaws could be matched from hi res scans of the card, but then it occurred to me that the thief can decide to further deface/damage the card any way he so chooses. Seems like no one would want to intentionally devalue a card, but for his purposes he may decide to add a corner crease or two. A recognizable PSA 4 '52 Mantle is probably worth less to him than a less recognizable 2. Regardless, this really sucks and I feel for the dealers. Hope their cards are returned somehow.

Unfortunately, I was just about to say the same thing...

[Cardboard Junkie]

This is true, just because you can see a dot or wrinkle or crease, once it is out of the slab it's just a 52 Mantle, with no way to prove that it is the same one, even if it looks identical. That is not proof. Dave.

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by itjclarke

I was of the mind that visible flaws could be matched from hi res scans of the card, but then it occurred to me that the thief can decide to further deface/damage the card any way he so chooses. Seems like no one would want to intentionally devalue a card, but for his purposes he may decide to add a corner crease or two. A recognizable PSA 4 '52 Mantle is probably worth less to him than a less recognizable 2. Regardless, this really sucks and I feel for the dealers. Hope their cards are returned somehow.

Oof, that didn't occur to me. If they're crafty enough to steal that card with hundreds if not thousands of people around, they could probably clean off that identifiable spot.

Let's hope for the best. Thank you, Ian, for giving us some hope.

[ScottFandango]

So frustrating reading this thread!

Maybe they (all the dealers) need to provide their own security at the national and not rely on the venues. The shared cost would be far less than the theft of a very expensive card.

[triwak]

Whomever stole that Tip-Top Barney Dreyfuss, obviously knew SOMETHING about prewar cards. Not the most famous of cards to the uninformed (like the '52 Mantle), but highly valuable to HOF collectors. Really sucks, if the thief was simply a fellow collector!!

[Cardboard Junkie]

Originally Posted by danmckee

I would love to catch someone stealing from me again, I will beat $250K that we lost in 1991 out of them!

Dan Mckee

This made me chuckle. As a victim of theft myself I completely understand your anger, but talking is the easy part Dan. Dave.

[brookdodger55]

Why not for high value cards put them in a locked case only to be opened upon when cash is shown to see them. No need to handle them if you just want to look, the glass is clear look all you want. I see dealers at my local shows lock all their pre-war showcases all the time. Seems pretty simple lock your cases. Trust no one
Mike

[Cardboard Junkie]

Mike...these are baseball card dealers, and you want them to have common sense? Shows are more of a social event than a business thing for them. They are too busy shoveling food into their craws and ignoring customers to be concerned with security. Then they cry the blues when things grow legs. Hard to feel sorry for anyone who doesn't care in the first place. Dave.

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by Cardboard Junkie

Mike...these are baseball card dealers, and you want them to have common sense? Shows are more of a social event than a business thing for them. They are too busy shoveling food into their craws and ignoring customers to be concerned with security. Then they cry the blues when things grow legs. Hard to feel sorry for anyone who doesn't care in the first place. Dave.

LOL!

What a way to paint everyone in this hobby with the same broad strokes. lol