A daring heist at the Dallas Card Show has left the sports memorabilia community reeling, with an estimated $2 million worth of rare baseball cards stolen in a well-coordinated theft.
The brazen act, captured on video and shared on social media by Ashish Jain, owner of Legacy Cardz, shows three men distracting the booth staff while a fourth man makes off with a briefcase. This briefcase, according to Jain, contained highly valuable cards, including rare collectibles featuring Jackie Robinson and Mickey Mantle. Despite the massive value of the stolen items, Jain is offering a $70,000 reward for information that leads to their recovery.
Jain described the thieves as sophisticated and well-prepared, indicating they knew exactly which briefcase to target. “It was the one with all the meat,” Jain told sports business reporter Darren Rovell.
The theft took place at the semi-regular Dallas Card Show, held at a hotel in Allen, Texas. The Allen police are currently investigating the incident, which Jain called a “predetermined and targeted” crime. Law enforcement officials have noted that this is the largest theft they have encountered at the Dallas Card Show.
Among the stolen items, the most valuable was a 1952 Mickey Mantle card, estimated to be worth $175,000. Additionally, there were several other Mantle cards, bringing the total value to around $400,000, according to Rovell.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Jain mentioned that video footage shows the thieves stacking chairs near his booth, suggesting they might have posed as employees. “These guys had been scoping us out all day,” he wrote, noting that they even changed clothes to avoid suspicion.
This high-stakes theft has underscored the risks and vulnerabilities inherent in the world of rare sports memorabilia, leaving collectors and vendors alike on high alert.