Masked Men Steal 221 Pounds of Gold

Museum Heist of a Solid Gold Block

By Jerry Garner

Three masked men entered a small museum in central Japan on Sunday and stole a solid gold block weighing 221 pounds. The gold, valued at up to $2 Million US Dollars, had very little protection or security because the museum wanted the treasure to be open to the public.

Located in central Japan is the quiet town of Takyama, which is home to the Ohashi Collection Kan Museum. The museum prides itself on providing education and cultural awareness to residents of Takyama and surrounding areas.

Among the many crafts and artifacts on display at the museum is a treasure that the Ohashi Collection Kan Museum acquired in 1994. This unique treasure is a solid block of gold weighing 221 pounds. Experts estimate the value at between $1.7 Million and $2 Million US Dollars. Suffice it to say, this is an enormous block of gold that is both heavy and highly valuable.

That value makes it surprising that the museum provided relaxed security for the gold, and that this decision was intentional. Museum curators wanted visitors to have the unique opportunity to actually touch the enormous block of gold. As such, there was virtually no security to protect the gold.

Motion sensors were out of the question, since people were constantly walking up to the display, and pressure sensors could not be used since the heavy block was constantly touched and rubbed. The display even lacked a basic glass display case, which would have prevented museum patrons from having direct access to the precious metal.

There were security cameras, but not on the floor the gold was located on, and the only security offered was the weight of the gold block. It seems that museum curators felt that the gold block was too heavy to be carried away from the museum, but that is exactly what happened when a group of masked men visited the property on Sunday.

Three men ran up to the museum, with one standing guard outside as the other two headed for the gold. A female museum employee noticed the masked me when she heard running footsteps. She attempted to intervene, but was easily pushed aside as the two men gathered up the gold and departed the museum. Police suspect that a fourth bandit may have been driving a get away car.

"We were very shocked ... but of course this was a big block of gold, and there was no security," the female employee, named Kurake said. "I suppose they could have been a little more careful."

The museum was closed on Monday citing an “emergency holiday” as authorities and museum staff try to make sense of what has happened. No arrests have been made in the case.

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Thieves Heist 221 Pounds of Gold From Japanese Museum