When we think about people who steal, we often have a misconception about the person committing the crime. We frequently assume the the thief is poor, perhaps homeless, but that’s a flawed perception. Believe it or not, rich people steal just as frequently as poor people.
10. The Czech Republic President Steals A Pen
We’ve all pocketed pens without thinking after we’ve used them, especially in the workplace, but that’s not what happened here. Vaclav Klaus stole a jewelled ceremonial pen during a document signing, and the entire thing was caught on tape.
One has to wonder why he would be so brazen to pocket a pen that was clearly reserved for such special occasions, especially while the cameras were rolling. When the president was questioned about his actions, his only defense was that he “takes things all the time,” which seems like a poor line of reasoning.
9. A Celebrity Chef Stole Onions
Of course, celebrity chefs don’t make as much money as presidents or movie stars, but they still make a lot. And celebrity chef Antony Worral Thompson was caught stealing something that he could easily afford. The famous British chef was arrested last year for stealing onions, cheese, and coleslaw.
What makes the incident more bizarre is that he stole these items while buying hundreds of pounds of champagne. The juxtaposition of having the cash to buy cases of champagne but stealing regular grocery items is staggering. Once the chef was arrested, he expressed remorse and admitted to crying about his choices every night in his room.
8. Egyptian King Steals A Watch
Why would a king need to steal a watch? Couldn’t he easily buy it or pay someone to buy it for him if he didn’t want to be inconvenienced? For King Farouk of Egypt, it seemed much easier to just take it.
This particular instance makes more sense when the man’s demeanour is explained. Farouk was almost as petulant and temperamental as a child. If he saw something that he wanted, he’d just take it. Ownership made no difference to him. What makes the story more fascinating is that the watch belonged to Winston Churchill.
7. Indian Restaurateur Thinks He’s Robin Hood
Restaurant owners don’t always do well financially; some make bad investments. But infamous Madhukar Mohandas Prabhakar was notorious for his enormous wealth and his sticky fingers. He even stole from wealthy homes in Mumbai.
Some people aren’t sure how much of his stolen cash lined his pockets and how much of his wealth came from his business. However, it’s safe to say that he was a successful businessman. What’s interesting about this particular thief is that he pulled a bit of a Robin Hood shtick, stealing from the rich to give to the poor. But Prabhakar was still caught and arrested. It seems intent doesn’t save you from the law.
6. Millionaire Kid Steals Makeup
In some cases, parents don’t give their wealth to their children while they’re still alive. Some are adamant about teaching their children the value of hard work and don’t want to just give them the fruits of their labour. But for millionaire child Caroline Giuliani, this wasn’t the case. She had plenty of her mayor father’s money at her disposal.
In 2010, she was caught stealing a few hundred dollars of makeup from an upscale shop. What’s more, she had the amount to pay for the items in her purse. Unsurprisingly, she only received a slap on the wrist for her actions.
5. A Millionaire Who Stole History
Farhad Hakimzadeh was an incredibly wealthy and intelligent businessman who was fascinated by cultural history and rare books. Because he was so taken with these artefacts, he apparently thought he had some sort of inherent right to them. Because of this, he decided it wouldn’t be a problem to steal several books from a library’s private collection.
Despite being such a book lover, he had no qualms about destroying many rare casings to expand his own collection. Knowledge should be free, and keeping the books with no intention of returning them - especially when you can afford them - is quite sad.
4. Politician Claims Charity Taxes
Hearing about corrupt politicians shouldn’t be that surprising; a politician is in the news every other week because of scandalous behaviour, and it seems British politicians aren’t any different. Just ask Frank Cook.
Frank applied for reimbursement for just £5 that he’d donated to charity. He tried to apologize and claimed that it was an honest mistake. But it’s hard to believe that defense when his bank account clearly showed a large sum of money with no explanation.
3. Woman Spends Everyone Else’s Taxes
The next thief on our list is Rita Crundwell. On top her US$80,000 wages, she decided to embezzle millions of taxpayers’ dollars. Many of these poor people made far less than she did. The fact that she thought that she could take over US$30 million from unsuspecting taxpayers without getting caught is a whole new brand of delusional.
2. Millionaire Steals Credit Card To Buy Pizza
Millionaire doctor Richard Ludwig decided that he wanted some pizza. This simple desire doesn’t seem like it should deserve much attention, but instead of using some of the US$250 on his person, he paid with a misplaced credit card from a Navy veteran.
When questioned about using the card instead of money that belonged to him, he simply responded “what else was I supposed to do but use it?” The complete lack of sense and human decency in that statement is absurd. He obviously knew the card wasn’t his, but he decided to use it anyway.
1. The Lego Bandit
Thomas Langenbach, a wealthy tech worker by day, became a seller of Legos on eBay by night. That sounds fine and dandy, but he would buy (sometimes steal) the toys for extremely discounted prices at Target, switch the barcodes, and sell them for a profit. He did this with thousands of toys.
His illegal side business made him a ton of money that he didn’t need; he was still working his lucrative day job. When the police raided his house and found the toys, Langenbach explained that he had a compulsion that he “couldn’t really explain.” He just had to sell Legos.
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