Robbers Crash Into Wells Fargo Museum in San Fransisco to Steal Gold Nuggets
January 27, 2015
Three suspects abandoned the stolen S.U.V. used in the heist and then drove off in a sedan.Credit Kristin Bender/Associated Press
Three masked robbers smashed a stolen sport utility vehicle into the entrance of Wells Fargo’s corporate museum in the heart of San Francisco’s financial district on Tuesday, then held a security guard at gunpoint and made off with gold nuggets from a display case, the San Francisco police said.
The police are investigating the bold and apparently well-coordinated robbery early Tuesday at the Wells Fargo History Museum, which is on the street level of the bank’s corporate headquarters.
The three robbers abandoned the S.U.V. and fled in a sedan that the police said was either parked nearby or could have been driven by a fourth person who was waiting with a getaway car.
While the police say their preliminary estimates of the nuggets’ value is about $10,000, the gold has sentimental value to the bank, which takes its history seriously. The police say the nuggets date to the early days of Wells Fargo, which was founded during the gold rush of the 19th century.
Wells Fargo operates 10 corporate museums around the country, including in Alaska, Phoenix and Charlotte, N.C.
The bank’s San Francisco museum includes a stagecoach used by Wells Fargo in the 1860s as well as works of art by notable Western artists, according to the museum’s website. A bank spokesman said the stagecoach was not damaged in the heist.
The website also mentions that the museum has “real gold from California gold country regions,” and a photo shows dishes of gold flakes with labels like “Dead Man’s Creek.”
This is the second time in less than two weeks that robbers in San Francisco have used a vehicle as a battering ram. On Jan. 19, thieves crashed a U-Haul truck into the Patagonia store near Fisherman’s Wharf and loaded it with stacks of clothing before driving off, said Grace Gatpandan, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco police.
The biggest cost of the robbery at the Wells Fargo museum might not have been the lost gold but the damage to the entrance. The police said early estimates of the damage were more than $200,000.
“We’re disturbed this happened to the Wells Fargo History Museum but are grateful no team member was harmed,’’ a Wells Fargo spokesman said in a statement. “Rest assured, the museum will reopen so it can continue to serve the thousands of visitors and Bay Area residents who visit it each year.”