Dealer: 1,000 rare, valuable coins stolen in Montville - Renowned coin dealer says stolen collection worth 'seven figures'
Arizona Coin Collector
http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20091013/UPDATES01/91013075/1005/NEWS01/Dealer++1+000+rare++valuable+coins+stolen+in+Montville
Dealer: 1,000 rare, valuable coins stolen in Montville
Renowned coin dealer says stolen collection worth 'seven figures'
The Daily Record Parsippany, N.J
BY TEHANI SCHNEIDER STAFF WRITER
October 13, 2009
MONTVILLE - Rare coins estimated to be worth millions
of dollars were stolen from the car of a renowned
Maryland dealer when he stopped in Pine Brook for
dinner on his way home from a coin show.
Julian Leidman left the Coinfest coin show in Stamford,
Conn., late Sunday with his wife and traveled to his
brother-in-law's home in Pine Brook, where they stopped
for dinner at Tiffany's on Route 46.
After more than an hour, Leidman said, the group left
the restaurant to find a "terrible" sight: Glass
littered the ground around his 2009 Toyota Sienna,
which he had strategically parked in front of the
restaurant so he could keep an eye on the driver's
side and rear, he said. The passenger-side window had
been smashed and four bags, three of which were
heavier than 50 pounds, were missing from the
cargo hold.
------------------------------
(Photo Of 1879 Coin)
http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?template=zoom&Site=C0&Date=20091013&Category=UPDATES01&ArtNo=91013075&Ref=AR&Profile=1005
This coin, an 1879 Judd Silver Dollar, was
among 1,000 rare and valuable coins stolen
from the car of a Silver Spring, Md., coin
dealer on Sunday, Oct. 11, in Montville. The
coin pictured here is worth nearly $6,500,
according to the victim, Julian Leidman.
------------------------------
Gone were the contents of two of the bags -- a cache
of valuable coins and collectible currency that
Leidman, 63, of Silver Spring, Md., had displayed at
the show.
The inventory included individual pieces valued as
high as $160,000, as well as many extremely rare and
unusual coins and currency dating to the Colonial
era, he said.
"It was a huge amount, seven figures," Leidman said,
enumerating the loss. "This is the worst thing that
has ever happened to me."
Montville Police on Tuesday declined to release
details of the burglary, citing the ongoing
investigation.
But coin dealers nationwide are rallying around
Leidman -- who is regarded as one of the most
prominent dealers in the United States -- and have
offered a cash award leading to the arrest and
conviction of those responsible for the robbery.
Jon Lerner and Laura Sperber, co-organizers of
the Coinfest show at the Stamford Hilton, put
up $2,500 toward the reward on Monday, and 20
other coin dealers immediately followed suit,
Lerner said.
Word quickly spread among the collector and dealer
community and, by Tuesday afternoon, the total
reward stood at $75,000, Lerner said. The goal is
to reach $100,000 by the end of the week, he said.
"All of the dealers were very saddened and upset by
it," said Lerner, of Westchester, N.Y. "Julian is a
very well known and respected dealer, and that's
what makes it very hard."
A dealer and consultant for more than 40 years,
Leidman has handled some of the most valuable
American coins, according to the American Numismatic
Association, which named him its Coin Dealer of the
Year for 2009.
Requests to help Leidman have come in from across
the country, and collectors and dealers have received
a list of the coins taken, Lerner said. The hope is
that some of the stolen inventory may surface at the
next large coin show this weekend in St. Louis, he
said.
"We're hoping whoever took the coins will try to sell
them or have information on them," Lerner said. "It's
tragic, not just the monetary value, but the value in
terms of history and what's lost to the collecting
community. Some of these items are just unique items
that cannot be replaced."
Leidman said his collection was insured, but is working
with his insurance company to determine what his policy
covers. He believes he may have been targeted during
Coinfest.
"I was one of the last people to leave the show, and
there were a couple of women around -- one of which had
been by my table a few times," he said. "When I left,
she was sitting out at the reception area of the hotel
and she was on her cell phone, and my wife said, 'The
lady just said, 'They're on their way out."
But Lerner said the show's security consists of both
armed and undercover guards who provide escorts to
dealers and collectors with valuables. The third annual
Coinfest show, billed as the largest show in the New
York metropolitan area, drew about 150 dealers to the
Connecticut hotel and thousands of collectors.
"We don't really know if he was targeted or if it was
random," Lerner said. "It shows the dealers that we do
have to remain very vigilant at all times."
Tehani Schneider: 973-428-6631; tschn...@gannett.com
..
Mr. Jaggers
Julian Leidman is one of the finest coin dealers of all time. This event
makes me sick.
James
Bruce Remick
"Mr. Jaggers" <lugburzman[at]yahoo[dot]com> wrote in message
news:hb3c8...@enews1.newsguy.com...
Just one more sad case of valuable coins left in a car............. Won't
these "expereinced" dealers ever learn? A million bucks!!!??? Have they
never heard of a bag lunch to munch on while driving directly home? With
that much loot, I'd hire me a security guard for the trip. Hate to see
anyone suffer this fate, but...........
sgt23
wrote:
> Arizona Coin Collector wrote:
> > FROM:
Julian Leidman is a member of another group I frequent, and I agree
James he is a good guy and I hope he is able recover all of his
inventory/collection. My only question is why did he not put the items
in the trunk?
Mr. Jaggers
A Toyota Sienna is a van.
James
Mr. Jaggers
Col. Steve Ellsworth, one of our major dealers in early copper coins, has
written several outstanding essays on numismatic security. These have been
reprinted in most or all of the popular numismatic press. Here is what he
has to say on "Driving with Coins":
http://www.butternut.org/coins/tip5.html
I urge everyone here to take the time to follow this link, read what is
there, and then follow each and every one of the other links in that section
of his website.
James
Bruce Remick
"Mr. Jaggers" <lugburzman[at]yahoo[dot]com> wrote in message
So why then did such an experienced dealer presume he was immune from the
threat of theft? Traveling away from a major coin show with such a
high-value inventory can be like approaching an ATM with an empty money bag
and leaving with a full one. Perhaps he became complacent if he had never
personally experienced such a robbery before.
As long as Ellsworth's advice sounds like it's from a counterterrorist
manual, I note that he recommends leaving your vehicle clean to help spot
smudges. My own field experiences with countering terrorist tactics
suggests the opposite-- get your vehicle dusty and dirty, including the
underside, and keep it that way. Tampering is much more evident and
magnetic devices are less likely to remain attached to a muddy frame, not
that coin dealers would be likely targets of terrorists, per se. Otherwise,
if transporting a million dollars worth of goods back and forth in a POV
seems to be one's only option, I would at least consider hiring a
professional security guard for the trip.
And I do hope Mr. Leidman recovers his coins.
Mr. Jaggers
Praps he has never read Ellsworth.
James of Occam
Arizona Coin Collector
This is a follow-up from the Coin Heist earlier.
-----------------------------------------------
FROM:
http://www.nj.com/news/local/index.ssf/2009/10/coin_dealers_reassessing_secur.html
Coin dealers reassessing security in wake of Montville heist
By Eugene Paik/For The Star-Ledger
October 14, 2009, 6:10PM
MONTVILLE -- Experts in the tight-knit world of
high-end coins and currency say there's a lesson
to be learned from the Sunday evening heist of
thousands of rare coins in Montville: Never
leave your goods unattended for a second.
In the world of rare coins, where dealers are
viewed by thieves as easy marks, the only way to
prevent thefts is to avoid any stops en route to
a destination, they say.
"Believe me, dealers in the business will take
another look at what they do," Westchester, N.Y.,
coin dealer Jon Lerner said yesterday. "I think
dealers will learn from the mistake."
Three days ago, Julian Leidman, of Silver Spring,
Md., locked his coins, believed to be worth at
least $1 million, in the cargo area of his minivan
as he dined at Tiffany's restaurant on Route 46 in
Pine Brook.
Leidman, described by rare-coin insiders described
as a prominent and respected dealer, is the
American Numismatic Association's 2009 Dealer of
the Year.
Leidman, his wife and his brother-in-law, a township
resident, arrived at the restaurant around 6:45 p.m.
and were seated in an area where the coin dealer
had a view of his vehicle.
After an hour, Leidman noticed that the
passenger-side window of his vehicle was smashed in
and that two 50-pound cases carrying valuable coins
and currency were missing.
The 63-year-old man had showcased his insured
collectibles last weekend at the Coinfest show in
Stamford, Conn., and was on his way home. Coinfest,
the largest coin show in the New York area, drew
thousands of collectors and more than 150 dealers,
said Lerner, one of its organizers.
Montville police declined to offer any details about
the theft Wednesday because the investigation was
ongoing.
The heist served as a reminder for the coin-dealing
community of the very real threat of
robbery, Lerner said.
Safety has long been the top priority for dealers, he
said. Security at coin shows have always been tight,
and guards are often armed.
Recently, Lerner said, at least three people were
arrested when they tried to snatch coins at a
Philadelphia show.
Before and after the shows, however, dealers are left
on their own to arrange security. And that's when the
robberies typically happen.
According to Scott Purvis, editor of the rare-coin
news Web site CoinLink, the Montville robbery may be
one of the most valuable coin grabs in recent years.
Possibly the most infamous and brazen, Purvis said,
occurred in 2007 at a Orlando, Fla., hotel. A
Minnesota dealer was ambushed and held at knifepoint
by masked robbers, who made off with about $4
million in coins.
Sometimes, Purvis said, robbers follow their victims
home from coin shows. That's what Leidman says
happened to him, a conclusion drawn partly by the
fact that the robbers didn't disturb anything else
in the minivan,
The claim is fairly common with dealers, said
Purvis, who has heard stories about dealers accosted
in their driveways by thieves who followed them home.
"They go into the shows and scout," he said of the
thieves.
Coin dealer Laura Sperber, of Lincroft, said most
dealers now use secured transport services, such as
Brink's, to deliver their valuables.
Collectors and dealers are also using the Internet
to publicize stolen items to track the thieves if
they try to sell them at shows.
"There's a lot of stuff that's very identifiable,"
Purvis said.
And he believes most of Leidman's show inventory
will resurface. Meanwhile, dealers across the
country have been contributing reward money for
the return of Leidman's coins.
About $80,000 have been raised so far, Lerner
said, and $100,000 should be available in reward
money by the end of the week.
..
Lee
(in article <YrbBm.2834$f64...@newsfe13.iad>):
If this dealer had been "targeted" he might be lucky that the robbery took
place on the road instead of at his home.
I am puzzled? Since every dealer and serious collector in the county knows
about the robbery and has lists of the stolen coins, etc., how are the
thieves going to unload any part of this collection?
Lee (a long time lurker)
rarebirdyatverizondotnet
Park Ridge, NJ
Bruce Remick
"Lee" <rarre...@verizon.net> wrote in message
news:KPSdnVT5rtZazErX...@giganews.com...
You seem to be assuming that every coin, antiques, and collectibles dealer
is honorable. I'm sure there are lots of contacts out there who would be
glad to accept and fence that loot at pennies on the dollar. If the thieves
knew of such a person beforehand, they may have been glad to unload their
traceable $million take for a "clean" ten or twenty grand. A legitimate
coin dealer may never see any of the stolen coins, except maybe third or
fourth hand years from now when an unsuspecting collector decides to part
with one.
Lee
(in article <W8JBm.21270$eJ4....@newsfe07.iad>):
You are right, I was assuming that most dealers are honorable.
How sad that such a wonderful collection goes underworld for a few crooks.
Hope they get caught and soon.
It is funny but I do not see the joy in owning a rare coin that I can not
brag about.
Lee
rarebirdyatverizondotnet
Park Ridge, NJ
Jud
> You are right, I was assuming that most dealers are honorable.
Please don't misinterpret the following, I am NOT trying to say what a
great guy I am. (Although I am!) 8-)
Just a few minutes ago I received a package from the Royal Australian
Mint with my order. However, also included was an order from a man in
Germany. As his invoice was also included, I contacted the RAM with
the error asking for instructions as to what they would like me to do.
My order was for $90.74 and his was for $175.45. I wouldn't be able to
sleep if I kept the coins, and I am sure that Herr Sonntag would like
his coins as well. I would hope that if the reverse happened, that the
other recipient would do the same. Still waiting for instructions from
the RAM.
Jud - Honest to a fault
Bill Krummel
"Jud" <numis...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:faf57008-b5fb-4ec9...@w19g2000yqk.googlegroups.com...
For me, the above is just one more reason for me to enjoy your posts, which
I do.
Bill