Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History (47 page)

217
  
Sitting in prison. . . . “Diamonds by Leonardo”:
Antonino Falleti, interview with author, Turin, September 17, 2008.

Epilogue

218
  
“You’re a thief and a liar. . . . Lie”:
Ocean’s Eleven
(2001).

218
  
“I may be . . . true story”:
Joshua Davis, “The Untold Story of the World’s Biggest Diamond Heist,”
Wired
magazine (San Francisco), April 2009.

219
  
victims had filed a lawsuit:
The suit was still in litigation as of early 2009.

219
  
Boost, therefore, . . . the crime:
Interestingly, Boost didn’t seem to be against calling the diamond detectives with possible new leads in the case from time to time, such as when she noticed a tenant wearing a fancy new watch or some other high-priced item. In the wake of the heist, Boost was as suspicious of her tenants as they were of her.

219
  
Van Camp left . . . than ever:
Gust Van Camp used the heist and his discovery of evidence in his ongoing campaign to clean up the Floordambos. According to a Belgian newspaper article from the early summer of 2008, Van Camp hoped to interest the authorities in draining a polluted canal in the forest by suggesting that the School of Turin had submerged the still-unfound loot from the heist at the bottom of it. Paul Demeyer, “Ruim Deze Beek en de Diamanten Komen Boven,”
Nieuwsblad
, May 31, 2008.

220–221
  
“The thing that . . . to prosecute”:
Patrick Peys, interview with author, in his office, Antwerp, September 26, 2008.

221
  
“the greatest story”:
Leonardo Notarbartolo, interview with author while in prison, Hasselt, Belgium, September 22, 2008.

221
  
Notarbartolo had made a similar offer . . . about the heist:
Todd Moss, a documentary filmmaker whose work appears on American cable networks, told the authors that “money was definitely the sticking point” in trying to negotiate an interview with Notarbartolo while he was still in jail. Through an intermediary, Moss offered him a token $300, which was politely rejected. Todd Moss, interview with author, via telephone, September 16, 2009.

222
  
the authors received word . . . according to their e-mail:
The December 27, 2008, e-mail reads in part: “Leo was disappointed that no deal was forthcoming during the time following your visit to him, but he has since managed to finalize an exclusive signed deal with Joshua [Davis] that satisfied his commercial needs. He has therefore told us he wanted to cut all ties with other journalists.” The e-mail was from Falleti’s e-mail address, but was signed by both him and Garbutt. Garbutt often helped Falleti compose messages and communicate with the authors because of her better mastery of English.

222
  
registered with the California Secretary of State . . . Davis’s home address in San Francisco:
Garbutt sent the authors an e-mail on October 8, 2008, with “the information about the company that is trying to make a deal with Leo. They are called underdog.inc.” This e-mail included a Santa Monica address which turned out to be a Premier Business Centers location, a company that offers virtual office space and storefronts for small businesses. Incorporation information found at the California Secretary of State’s Web site, last accessed on September 16, 2009.

222
  
Notarbartolo’s friends . . . and Notarbartolo:
Antonino Falleti, e-mail to author, March 13, 2009.

222
  
an online video interview:
The video was embedded in the article online;
See
http://www.wired.com/video/trash-foils-diamond-heist/15404460001
.

222
  
Davis credits his own . . . to talk
: In a series of e-mail exchanges the week of July 23, 2009,
Wired
Articles Editor Mark Robinson said there was no financial arrangement between Davis and Notarbartolo, no promise of a movie deal, and no exchange of money aside from a small reimbursement by Davis to Notarbartolo for the cost of making some phone calls from prison. Robinson had no firsthand knowledge of Davis’s discussions with Notarbartolo and referred the authors to Davis for details about the agreement. Davis did not reply to requests for comment. Also, Robinson said Notarbartolo agreed to be interviewed by Davis because he speaks French and because Davis had pursued the story for a long time. However, Antonino Falleti told the authors that Notarbartolo agreed to talk to Davis for a different reason. In an e-mail sent on December 27, 2008, Faletti wrote: “Leo was disappointed that no deal was forthcoming [from the authors of this book] during the time following your visit to him, but he has since managed to finalize an exclusive signed deal with Joshua [Davis] that satisfied his commercial needs.”

222
  “
refused to discuss his case”:
The article states that Notarbartolo “has refused to discuss his case with journalists, preferring to remain silent for the past six years. Until now.” Joshua Davis, “The Untold Story of the World’s Biggest Diamond Heist.”

222
  
reporters in Belgium, Italy, and the United States:
In Belgium: Jean-Charles Verwaest, interview with author, Antwerp, September 30, 2008. In Italy: Lodovico Poletto, interview with author, in the
La Stampa
office, Turin, January 16, 2009. In the United States: Simon Surowicz, interview with author, via telephone, April 29, 2009.

222
  ABC News
producer Simon Surowicz:
Surowicz was the producer of the
Primetime Live
episode on the Antwerp Diamond Heist. Simon Surowicz, interview with author, via telephone, April 29, 2009.

222
  
made contact with these authors:
Author Scott Selby initially corresponded with Notarbartolo in March 2006 while Notarbartolo was in prison. Two years later, on March 22, 2008, Notarbartolo’s friends contacted the authors on Notarbartolo’s behalf and arranged for the authors to meet Notarbartolo in prison.

223
  
“Notarbartolo felt like he had stepped into a movie”:
Joshua Davis, “The Untold Story of the World’s Biggest Diamond Heist.”

224
  
“they worked in the dark”:
Ibid. The article did not say why the thieves worked in the dark, the reason given just being an explanation for how they were supposedly able to do this (“[s]ince they had memorized the layout of the vault in the replica”).

224
  
reported to the diamond detectives:
Patrick Peys, interview with author, in his office, Antwerp, September 23, 2008. Detail later confirmed on April 24, 2009, in an interview between Jorge Dias De Sousa and author via telephone.

224
  
“turned on . . . next box”; “muffled flashes”; “leather satchels”:
Joshua Davis, “The Untold Story of the World’s Biggest Diamond Heist.”

225
  
Heist victim Fay . . . terrorist attacks:
Fay Vidal, interview with author, via telephone, July 20, 2009.

225–226
  
“They did not . . . they took”:
Ibid.

226
  
numerous inconsistencies with known facts:
Among the inconsistencies: In the
Wired
article, the thieves couldn’t use cell phones in the vault due to a lack of reception, but earlier in the article, one of the diamond detectives was able to call Securilink from his cell phone while “standing inside the vault” with no problem;
Wired
claimed only one bag of garbage was disposed in the Floordambos, when in fact detectives collected four bags of garbage; in
Wired
, the Delhaize receipt was found in Notarbartolo’s apartment when in real life it was found in the household garbage bag left with the heist trash in the Floordambos; in
Wired
, the thieves bypassed the vault’s sensors by tinkering with wires above the ceiling slats (in the dark, no less), but those wires were not part of the vault’s security system;
Wired
also claimed that Italian police broke down the door to the villa in Trana during their first search for supposed illegal weapons, but an officer who was involved in the search told the authors Marco Notarbartolo opened the door for investigators without complaint.

226
  
locksmiths would indeed . . . video still:
Professional safecrackers have allowed that this isn’t impossible—but the image would have had to be perfect and crystal clear. A smart thief fabricating a key like this would have made several to account for possible variances in the depth of the grooves cut into the bit. Barry Wels, e-mail to author, July 11, 2009.

226
  
“directly above [the concierge’s] head”:
Joshua Davis, “The Untold Story of the World’s Biggest Diamond Heist.”

226
  
“Nearby, in a storage room . . . video signal”:
Ibid.

226
  
“fully functional”:
Ibid.

227
  
“What he says is . . . bullshit”:
Patrick Peys, interview with author, via telephone, April 23, 2009.

227
  
“the biggest bullshit I’ve ever heard”:
Ibid.

228
  
“We know that . . . the scam”:
Ibid.

228
  
“laughed it off . . . in this way”:
Philip Claes, interview with author, via telephone, September 29, 2009.

228
  
“I really do . . . on everyone else”:
Patrick Peys, interview with author, via telephone, April 23, 2009.

229
  
Falleti successfully called Notarbartolo’s cell phone:
Garbutt, “A Chronicle of Criminal Coincidences.” Falleti’s account predates Notarbartolo’s discussion with Davis, and there was no reason at that time for Falleti to lie about his phone conversations with Notarbartolo that day.

229
  
“fairy tale” . . . “inventions”:
Pietro Tavano, letter to author, April 20, 2009.

230
  
D’Onorio claims . . . on the loose:
Elio D’Onorio, interview with author, via telephone, June 11, 2009.

230
  
“Who, exactly, is . . . hard to believe”:
“Rants,”
Wired
magazine (San Francisco), June 2009, but published online on May 22, 2009. The letter to the editor was attributed to Dave Millman of San Jose, California.

230
  
“It’s true that . . . been lying”:
Mark Robinson, Articles Editor,
Wired
magazine, e-mail to author, July 29, 2009.

230
  
“Notarbartolo’s claims . . . check them”:
Ibid., July 30, 2009.

231
  
“From what we read . . . absolutely wrong”:
Patrick Peys, e-mail to author, March 29, 2009.

231
  
“We participated in . . . his account”:
Agim De Bruycker, interview with author, via telephone, July 17, 2009.

231
  Variety
reported on March 16:
Dave McNary and Tatiana Siegel, “JJ Abrams Producing Heist Film; Paramount Pic Based on Wired Article,”
Variety
, March 16, 2009.

231
  
film producer J. J. Abrams:
Abrams was the Hollywood powerhouse behind such hits as
Felicity
,
Alias
,
Lost
,
Fringe
,
Mission Impossible III
,
Cloverfield
, and
Star Trek
(2009). Abrams was also
Wired
’s guest editor for the magazine’s May 2009 issue.

231
  
according to
Hollywood Reporter: Jay A. Fernandez and Borys Kit, “Paramount Sets ‘Diamond’ with J. J. Abrams,”
Hollywood Reporter
, March 17, 2009.

231
  
Davis to obtain . . . in exchange for telling his story:
According to
Wired
’s Articles Editor Mark Robinson, the magazine reviewed its policies about reporters discussing the possibility of movie deals with their sources after the authors of this book raised questions about Davis’s interaction with Notarbartolo. Robinson said in a July 30, 2009, e-mail, “It has sparked some internal discussion here at
Wired
and caused us to think hard about the potential for the appearance of conflict of interest. Going forward, we have decided that writers will not be allowed to make agreements about possible movie deals until after stories are closed.” He clarified in a later e-mail that he does not believe there was a conflict of interest in this case. Mark Robinson, e-mails to author, July 29–31, 2009.