This is a good reminder to not put all your eggs in one Birkin… though I’m guessing if you’re just casually carrying this amount of stuff around, these aren’t all your ”eggs” (and thanks to reader Klaus for flagging this)…
Continue reading: $9.3 Million Birkin Bag Stolen At Airport Check-In Counter
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
I find it hard to believe that People with €8.5 million in carry on ‘queue at check in’
Given the restrictions on Russian banking and travel from the EU to Russia, it’s not that hard to believe.
Recently, in US cities where police are discouraged and there's a strong defund the police movement, crime is not investigated except for maybe murder. Theft is met with "file a report online" and "Submit the report to your insurance company, if any". Burglary with video, who cares. This shows that America is fast becoming a land of evil people, fulfilling the Iranian promise that America is the great satan. It used to be false but is slowly becoming true.
For once, I'm disappointed that the police got the crooks. In this case, the oligarch family got their baubles back. Hopefully Ukrainian troops will be their next owners.
Ben, as far as I know under EU sanctions a private jet is not an option for Russian clients to any destination, not just direct to Russia. Sanctions also ban any direct flights to Russia, private or commercial.
So the only decent airlines that still fly to Russia are TK and the ME3. Would be interesting to see if US/EU could expand sanctions by making the airlines choose between Russian and US/EU airspace. These airlines are profiting off this war, with extremely high fares to/from Russia that people with $9m bags don't bat an eye at.
And yes, I am pretty sure these people are new to flying commercial. I bet they would've use the PS airport option in a heartbeat if it existed in Europe 🙂
"Many people assume that you’re safe once you get inside the airport terminal, and that because of how crowded airports are, you’re unlikely to have stuff stolen from you."
Who are these people you refer to? I feel like it's common knowledge that crowded areas pose the greatest risk for pickpockets and purse-snatchers.
The way so many Russians fled the war and just blow through their oligarch plunder in Dubai while pointing their noses down at everybody else there... Good. I hope to see many, many more incidents like this. I have no ounce of sad feelings for these people. They trot around Dubai with every single family member wearing matching Armani shirts shoving around people whom they deem inferior (seriously, one of them bumped into me and the glare of that person... yuck!). I don't wish conscription upon these people, but I wish they were home to deal with the aftermath of their leadership's decisions. Dubai would be wise to stop letting them park their cash and focus on immigrants from other countries.
Has anybody else here whose travelled to Dubai encountered issues with them?
And this is why we can't have the good luggage at the airport! They really should have hired a security team. I can only imagine what other valuables the family was carrying.
The thieves should give 20% to the Ukrainian military and they will be awarded the Spanish medal of freedoms.
Probably just a Russian troll. Summary: Russian gaudy baggage and jewelry stolen at airport in Spain, thieves caught by police in Spain, Americans are evil people because they do not indict criminals.
Isn't Turkish Airlines state owned? And turkey is part of nato? And we wanted new countries to join nato? Maybe even Ukraine at some point? Zero chance sanctions ever fall on turkey for anything
That was my first thought.... someone carrying that much in valuables in personal luggage surely can afford to bring along hired help to handcuff it to?
While on the private jet topic... Although it's not possible to fly directly from the EU/US to Russia, could you not just schedule a stop in a third country (e.g. Serbia, Bosnia, Turkey, etc.) and proceed on the same aircraft to Russia? Obviously assuming it's a charter since Russian aircraft couldn't enter much of Europe's airspace
He's referring to a woman in Venice who has developed social media fame catching pickpockets. Not Spanish.
If I had a near $10 million bag I'd not travel with it or I'd have on my side every second of the trip. Also, stealing from rich Russians probably isn't a good idea. You'd better hope the cops got to you first.
I do not watch Fox News. I have called the police. In one case, they came after 14 hours for burglary. In another case, they said to just file a report online.
TASS Russian News Agency has tda1986 hook, line and sinker, don't they?
Nope. Private jets chartered by Russians are not allowed to operate in EU. Origin/destination in a 3rd country don't matter.
Wrong. Fox is Make America Great Again, not Americans are becoming unethical and a great satan.
"Dubai would be wise to stop letting them park their cash and focus on immigrants from other countries."
Umm dont think thats happening. Every bit of greed there too to not turn down anyone willing to spend a boatload of Dirhams there!
Yes. But remembering they are Russian perhaps their usual security is busy. I hope somebody got a big finder fee!
Expensive jewelry can be used to port around assets and liquidate at destination without having to use the banking systems as much. Sort of like expensive art work, but more portable and easier to use to buy off people to “look the other way”.
Good for Barcelona authorities for solving it so quickly. Now if they could have deterred or avoided the pickpocket who stole my mom's phone there...
Right?!
It's like they want to line up and fellate both the dotard and Pootie.
Ew.
Meh… just another bag snatch in Barcelona, didn’t they read the travel guides?
Roman Abramovich Family? They got to keep ALL the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ since they escaped to Israel. Israeli Government will not confiscate their money,even if USA insisted on it.Why? Because They control the US Treasury & they decide! Any other country if they do not confiscate, US will come after them.By the way, Roman Abramovich is not the only one who took $Billions to Israel to escape.
Take your hatred of Jews and shove it up your backside in a splintered bottle.
Please put a hold on the anti-Semitic nonsense. The US Treasury is controlled by the US Government voted in by the American public, at least a plurality of which identifies as being Christian or of Christian heritage.
The British and US governments found Roman A a useful go-between to the Russian government and to a lot of other staunch Putin-supporting Russian oligarchs, and so he got some favors for a while that way. Squirreling away questionable assets in Israel is an issue, but black money from Russia and other former Soviet bloc systems has lots of presence around London, around the US, and also in the UAE, Turkey and across the more touristy hotspots in the EU.
The comments seem to either report appreciation for the Barcelona Police or regret that the thieves didn't get away with the loot.
What about asking who these Russians were, why they were carrying 9.3million euro in fungible assets like jewelry and further asking about the source of the funds that bought them? Where they bought in the EU or Schengen (like Switzerland)? This seems to be the more interesting issue and likely for the EU as well. Laundering money especially if you are Russian usually attracts a lot of attention especially these days.
If they were just ordinary rich Russians they probably wouldn't be carrying around so much fungible loot.
Yes, we just returned from the UAE, and the number of fat, happy Russians blissfully vacationing while their country murders innocent European civilians was truly disgusting. A horrible, corrupt, arrogant, backwards, ugly culture that must suffer the consequences of their actions.
Wonder if the contents were cleared with authorities to be taken out of the country. You need to declare such large sums. Police need to question the travellers.
I'm shocked that this happened in a Western European country of all places. You would have expected this to happen in the US or some 3rd World country
Also shame on those in the comments section praising the theivery just because the victims were Russian
I know people who got their stuff stolen by baggage handlers and other airport staff before and 99.99% of the time you'll never get it back.
Theivery should never be tolerated, thats just showing that you value other people's things more than your own life.
"Many people assume that you’re safe once you get inside the airport terminal, and that because of how crowded airports are, you’re unlikely to have stuff stolen from you. As you can tell, obviously that’s not the case."
Errrrrrr, no. I assume I'm safe because of the high levels of security and a significant proportion of the people there are actively ID'd. Assuming you're safe from theft because it's crowded seems absurd - the more crowded an area is, the easier it is for things to get stolen.
And no, a single theft doesn't mean it's "obviously not the case" that you're safer in an airport than on the city streets. Especially in a city like Barcelona famous for its pickpockets.
You'd be surprised at the interesting levels of ordinary wealth and the foolishness of the people holding it. I remember living in the East Village in NYC back in the early 2000s and using a bodega ATM. The previous user had left their receipt and the available balance on their account was mid-six figures. Now if you have, say, $600k in a checking account, you either don't know what you're doing or don't care. Either way, you're freakin' rich.
Also, I just read about a local elderly couple who were zip-tied and robbed by two guys who compromised their Coinbase account and forced them to transfer nearly $200,000 of holdings. Now it's a weird case for a lot of reasons, but one big question for me is—if this old couple is holding that much in crypto, how much are they holding in cash?
2 types of thieves. The ones who got arrested in a rental car. The others who got their belongings back and always get away with everything. Would not like to hang out with neither of the groups.
However it’s peanut’s to these people.
Someone was obviously following them waiting to pounce.
You’re obviously not very up to date or understand why this was quoted.
Moreover Barcelona is in Catalonia
Less than €30k of that €8-9 million estimated value of the stolen bag was cash. The rest of the value was in non-cash goods.
I am on friendly terms with a few billionaires, and some of them do get in lines and wait for agents at airports to get checked-in for commercially scheduled common carrier flights from time to time. They aren’t always flying on private jets all the time out of crowd-free airports.
'This is a good reminder to always keep a close eye on your belongings at the airport. Many people assume that you’re safe once you get inside the airport terminal, and that because of how crowded airports are, you’re unlikely to have stuff stolen from you. As you can tell, obviously that’s not the case.'
What do you mean? This is exactly a case of why airports are safe. Even if someone does take something, the security is significant so the people who stole it can be easily tracked.
Surely nobody thinks that crowded=safe from thieves. I mean, crowded places are where pickpockets thrive. People feel safe in airports because they assume that even if something was stolen, the level of security means that the whole incident would be on cctv.
Who’s stupid enough to carry such high valued items to the airport and onto a commercial flight. This is shit to take on on a private jet. I wish they didn’t get their shit back.
The comment is not just a criticism of Israel — a country playing a bad game much like China, India, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, and others when it comes to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — but it is also peddling an anti-semitic trope about “Jewish control” of the US, space lasers, _____ [fill in the blank with additional bigoted nonsense].
When the criticism of Israel is based on conspiratorial anti-semitic tropes about Jews controlling global financial systems, it IS anti-semitic.
I didn’t realize I was dealing with an expert on the subject! I will totally defer to your very extensive personal experience, derek. You have my SINCEREST apologies.
I am not sure rich Russians want to come to any one’s attention in the EU carrying 9.3 million in fungible loot. You are. telling me this is normal?
Something I had for dinner last night - either a mediocre steak in the beautiful city of Wrocław, or mediocre veggies that came with it - wasn’t good, I felt like puking a few hours later and today regretted I didn’t force myself to.
The good news is - next time I do need to puke, I’ll just go through comments under this post, the rest will come easy,
I’m a bit surprised that these people aren’t chartering private jet between BCN and DXB given they are lugging around minimally 8.5 m worth of things. Doing a bit of math, jewelries and cash add up to almost 7 m euros. Himalayan birkin with diamonds is around 500k, you have to wonder what happened to that 1 m not listed especially they are listing 100k cash, 45k Chopard watch, etc.
Ben, clearly you'e not familiar with the viral meme going around. Are you old or very old?
When someone has obscene wealth, your standards don't apply. Do you get it yet?
The rest of these commenters, apparently. Lord of folks in here disagreeing on this statement, but for opposite reasons.
So many idiotic comments. I don’t go around wishing harm on every American I see because of the horrific crimes their countrymen have committed against humanity.
If your hand bag itself is worth so much, wouldn’t it be wiser to fly a private jet? Guess when you can buy so expensive you couldn’t spend on security?
Always pay attention to your belongings, such an expensive bag and it's contents should have never been left unattended.
No sympathy, especially as the person who lost this was Russian. Who are trash tourists everywhere they travel to
Not mad. Couldn't happen to better people, stealing my land and killing my people. Keep stealing from the Oligarchs please. Cowards.
That’s pretty swift work by the Barcelona Police- I’m sure they were offered some sort of reward to apprehend the said thieves - maybe the diamond brooch
They were lucky not to be in Copenhagen airport, we recently had our backpack & passports stolen, no security present, totally indifferent police. They refused to believe us when we showed them the location of our bag which was still in the airport, from our air tag. All travelers through Kastrup, beware, there are thieves operating in the airport and you will get no help from the authorities.
There's an error in your headline. If you have enough money to buy a *bag* for more than a million dollars, and then to feel comfortable using it regularly, it's not possible to steal from you.
These people spewing hatred in the comments for no reason, must have the lowest IQ, envious and bitter or worse...all of the above. Strange way to live your life.
Lucky, does it bother at all that the comments in here are vile? Replace the word Russian with a word like Gay, Jewish, Arab, Ukrainian, etc. Would that be OK? Your site has become a gathering place for haters and ignorant people to spew vile remarks. Maybe consider moderating some comments ?
Unbelievable amount of hate mongers posting here. Generalizations about all wealthy Russians is pure ignorance.
Entitled me .......but everything doesn't make you happy but be in Integrity is such kindness of Gold Silver Diamonds of Love
I was station manager for an airline in BCN and this airport is a hot spot for theifs. They target certain nationalities such as Russians, Chinese and Iranians who generally carry a lot of cash and also couples with small children who don't pay attention to their belongings since they are preoccupied with kids. We had suggested so many time to police to limit terminal access to ticket holders to no avail. Problem is getting worst and not better.
Two comments: Went to Iceland last August with my son. There were quite a few Russians onboard, all obviously wealthy. They said it took them 3 days to get to Iceland with all the restrictions. My son and I invariably were seated next Russians every dinner- they all vocally supported Putin. I did notice that the Russians did ALL the optional excursions including the most expensive ones.
As far as airport thievery. A good friend was talking to her tour trip leader (in Europe somewhere) upon arrival while waiting for others and one of her roller boards was stolen at her feet in the airport!
@Sid Because Americans are the only ones who, according to you, have committed crimes against humanity.
I had a client whose passport was picked while in line for check in at OHare. What a nightmare! Had to go and get an emergency passport while her husband left on the cruise and she joined him later missing part of her cruise.
I have also experienced Russians while vesting Dubai and unfortunately they were loud, brash and arrogant. We were staying at the Sheraton on the beach and there were many families lounging and playing in the hotel pool. Three Russian men came, splashing and jumping in the pool, yelling and shouting, almost knocking over kids, and just acting like boorish, cultureless, obnoxious losers. No one said anything to them because frankly they looked crazy. The entire pool emptied and let them have the pool to themselves.
I won't demean these folks. I agree with the author that if they weren't guarding their stuff with their lives, it isn't that much money to them.
IMO, to spend that much money on things like that is simply foolish. Ego boosting status symbols are truly ridiculous. No one but other fools care. The envious are fools for being envious. Others who compete for who owns the best are also fools. What good is it at all?
Totally trust airport security? Nope. Heard so many stories about stolen items from handcarry going through security point. Beware! Keep your money and jewelery on you and if asked to remove, and place in that infamous tray, follow the items like a hawk! Flew back from Europe after a month of being cognizant 24 7, let my guards down at France Airport only to find $1700 US stolen from my purse!
A money launderer got stolen from. People who have trouble moving their money thru various countries due to embargos do this to launder their cash and avoid paying the embargos, etc. I'd like to read a follow up in the investigation then then ensued on the oligarch.
Why would people need to travel with all those riches? Then not even notice when are stolen?
The same thing happened to me at the Air France Premier check-in at El Prat Barcelona in 2017, albeit the damages were under 5 figures. The police did not even budge in that specific instance. They asked if I had insurance, gave me a police report for making my claim and sent me on my way. Though I did miss my flight and Air France was kind enough to make all the required changes and provided me with a nice hotel for the night.
I can't help but wonder exactly how many people could be housed & fed with that kind of money. Even if I were very wealthy I just can't see myself spending such enormous amounts of money on these types of things. What the hell does a $1,000 purse or shirt really do that a $50 one can't?
There is so much need in this world. Flaunting wealth is boorish and shows one to be shallow in character and lacking in intellect. If all you are about is of things for showy display that you need to feel important.
You are in lack of heart ❤️
Sounds to me that even if the bag and its contents ie Jewels were not recovered the owners must have had them insured if not, why were they carrying all this precious cargo in the first place? Surely, the Airport Staff were alerted before as they would have had to go through Security
Millions for a Birkin is insane.
Add to it they were Russians and my sympathy that was zero drops into the negative. There is no good Russian with a Birkin bag and Louis Vuitton luggage, go back and see Papa Putin
Wow stupid people leaving that kind of luggage and not paying attention is a reminder , don’t be stupid. Watch your luggage and your ass no matter where you are. Flaunting that kind of luggage and jewels is an invitation for a theft to happen. When I travel out if the country I always travel with American Express travelers Checks which are covered 100% if they are stolen.
Airport security could care less if your valuables are stolen. They just take a report and basically tell you , don’t hold your breath waiting for us to find your stolen property.
Oligarchs are usually self centered arrogant obnoxious people who got their riches out of corrupt business deals. Kind of like our so called oligarchy president got his wealth from corruption and treasonous activity. We all know how he earned all of his his shady LLC ventures. I pray he is one day locked up and that every dollar he took illegally is taken away from him and his sorry excuse of a son
Dubai? Not even relevant. That's a country that arrested a woman truck driver for yelling.
Stay away from Dubai and blaming the Russians is victim blaming. Where they live or travel to didn't make ripping them off ok.
More of the question why not carry it on the plane with you and why do you not have insurance for it. For jewelry and other valuables there is insurance you can get for travel and such movements. On the other hand articles like this show just how this blog has changed over time. It used to be more focused on points and miles. Seems it's more about things like this these days.
Who places the value on purses? In my opinion, the Birkin is way over rated. It reminds me of a elderly womans errand bag.
1) is this a fact or fiction story ?
2) why would honest people flaunt wealth ?
3) why fly commercial when you are so rich ?
4) good, hard-working, honest people don't flaunt
What a story. Now a day no photos of tge rich Russian nor the thief! Uh
I will write a next story!
God stole 20 million from an Egyptian
Russians should ban of travel anywhere in the world. Must be trap in their own cage
Private or comercial you still go through security check ...just diferent location ...wtf are you talking about taxes ?? Airports are not tax officers
If this happened in the Philippines the theives wouldn't even be able to leave the airport with the items they stole. They would have to finish their shift first so it doesn't look obvious
It is never a good idea for anyone to carry around expensive items while traveling; especially if you don't keep an eye on your valuables. No one likes a THIEF! I don't care how rich a person maybe, they don't deserve to be a victim of theft. God wants us to be kind to each other, not steal from each other. I am sure this was a learning experience for the victims; never flaunt valuable items while traveling! You definitely make yourself a target in one capacity or another. I'm surprised they made it to the airport with those pricey items. In the States they would have been a target before leaving their house. Thank God their lives were spared and their merchandise was returned. I hope they can say... LESSON LEARNED.
One giant lie. In no way would actual wealth as described be flying commercial with the proletariat. Never. #clickbait #fakenews
Unfortunately, people are still hesitant to get executive protection in those cases. They rather risk physical and mental damage because there are several misconceptions.
It’s expensive: It is more affordable than you think (imagine what you have to pay their therapist now to get over the trauma on top of the loss).
You can even claim the service for their taxes.
I don’t need it: Situational awareness is key. Just because we don’t see them doesn’t mean they are not there. People are watching just waiting for their time to implement their plans.
I’m not there yet: we’ll that is what the majority thinks until it is too late.
Ask yourself: Is your life and peace of mind not worth it? We only have one. There is no “reset” button.
No smart thieves. If you rent a car, you would think to have a second getaway car so you can't be followed.
The victim is a digital creator and the editor in chief of the perfect magazine and she’s not Russian for your information you can check her out on Instagram and TikTok.
The picture shows rental cars with New York license plates. The theft took place in Spain? Does this mean that a fleet of New York licensed cars are located in Spain?
What a ridiculous comment!
1) Yes, it's a true story - widely reported in the Spanish media
2) Why wouldn't they? It may be distasteful, but there's no law against it
3) Again, is there a law forcing them to fly private? If their destination was Moscow via Dubai, they couldn't fly direct on a private plane anyway due to the embargo.
4) Words fail me. Get a life....
Had to be Barcelona... The one place in Europe where I had my phone stolen, and everyone seems to come back from there with some petty crime story. I know these things happen all over the world, but it really seems out of control in BCN. Also several reports of people being targeted coming off the Mallorca to BCN ferry. Such a shame as it's a great city.
Eh don’t care for the jewelry. Honestly most of it is the product of unethical slave labor and unsustainable manufacturing processes anyways.
This has to be a fake news story. Wealthy Russians would not be flying commercial airlines through Europe. And nobody, and I mean nobody, would be stupid enough to carry millions of dollars worth of jewels in a designer bag, as well as $10,000 cash. That is completely unbelievable, and incomprehensible. I'm not buying it.
The obvious takeaway here is this: if you steal a bag at an airport, DON'T rent a car; catch a bus, jump off after two stops, catch another and so on until you're free and clear...but...good luck trying to fence a haul like that!
Not surprised that it happened, but I am surprised that the bad guys got caught.
Here in Los Angeles, purses are stolen and seldom seen again.
On another note, that is a very
healthy portion of a rich man's lunch to be carrying around... lots of gems and temptation.
All in all, the fact that the purse and it's contents were recovered,
I wouldn't even book the two guys responsible.
Hmm.. i think it is targetted. But those bag can have its own bling2. Esp if diamond encrusted strap can be a bit "hey i am expensive" the travelling bag is obvious. While check in in some european airport the que to check in desk not fully distinguish between 1st and rest until right at the check in counter row.. but hey ignorant is a bliss. The Russian enter europe must be in same casual manner and i bet with tons more cash
If you have that much wealth, you would be flying in a private jet or in 1st class where you don't even need to q when checking in.
Those Russians could never have become so rich without being thieves themselves.
I think it's sad that there are millions of people around the world living in poverty and starving to death yet some people have it so good and don't appreciate what they have, they should try switching places w some of these people who are starving and homeless etc maybe then they'd take better care of an 9.3 million dollar item
These Russian oligarchs chains of families should be persecuted just like Putin. They are very show off anyhow, the police should let it happen, I don't feel sad for These people who has all the luxurious things while most of their compatriots are suffering.
Believe me, they would not have any trouble whatsoever. Getting rid of high-end jewelry in this day and age with gold being is expensive as it is, no, no problem at all.