Thieves stole at least 1 million dimes — that's $100K — from a cargo truck parked overnight at a Philadelphia Walmart, police say

Sarah Jackson
Updated ·2 min read
13
Coins of USA. Franklin D. Roosevelt depicted on the US dime coin.
Thieves got away with a million dimes in Philadelphia.wrangel / Getty Images

  • Thieves made off with an unusual bounty from a Walmart parking lot in Philadelphia on Thursday.

  • At least 1 million dimes, or $100,000, were stolen from a cargo truck parked in the lot overnight, reports say.

  • The truck was carrying $750,000 in dimes from a Philadelphia US Mint facility to Florida.

A Philadelphia Walmart was the site of a recent theft, but the thieves didn't get away with any merchandise from the big-box retailer. Instead, their bounty was coins — lots and lots of coins.

Police say thieves made off with at least 1 million dimes, worth $100,000, from a cargo truck parked overnight in a Walmart parking lot, according to the Associated Press. The truck's driver had picked up $750,000 in dimes from a US Mint on Wednesday and had parked the vehicle at the Walmart overnight while he went to get some sleep before hitting the road again the following day to drive to Florida, according to local news station 6 ABC.

Authorities say a bolt cutter was likely used to break into the truck, and dimes were found strewn across the parking lot Thursday morning, according to local news station NBC10.

Philadelphia Police Captain John Ryan told local reporters that northeastern and southern Philadelphia have seen similar cargo thefts in recent months, including thefts of lamb, chicken, TVs, refrigerators, and alcohol.

No arrests have been made yet and the investigation is ongoing.

The Philadelphia Police Department and the US Mint did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment. Walmart deferred to police for any information regarding the incident.

John Chu, the acting chief of public affairs at the US Mint, told NBC10 in a statement, "The carrier responsible for the shipment is a commercial contractor and is personally insured against incidents of loss or theft. The Mint has implemented countermeasures to aid in the prevention of similar types of thefts in the future."

Read the original article on Business Insider