Diamond Heist

Beneath the Antwerp Diamond Centre, where we are now, one of the most spectacular crimes of the century took place in 2003: the infamous Antwerp diamond heist. Two floors underground was a heavily secured vault filled with diamonds, gold, and other valuables worth about one hundred million dollars. The security was top-tier: millions of combinations on a single lock, nine layers of protection, cameras, and sensors. It seemed impossible to crack.

Yet Leonardo Notarbartolo and his gang, known as the “School of Turin,” managed to do it. With his charismatic leadership, he brought together a team with unique skills: “The Genius,” who could disable any alarm, “The Monster,” a brute skilled in mechanics and lockpicking, and “The King of Keys,” an older master at forging keys.

It seemed like the perfect crime. The vault was opened, the loot taken, and they vanished without a trace… until one small mistake sealed their fate. A half-eaten salami sandwich, carelessly left behind, provided DNA that led to the arrest of nearly the entire team.

Only “The King of Keys” managed to escape—with the money. The diamond heist beneath the Antwerp Diamond Centre remains one of the boldest and most mysterious crimes in the city’s history.