The robbery in a Philadelphia parking lot was not a nickel case. Just dimes.
Police are searching for the person who broke into a trailer carrying $750,000 worth of dimes, a crime discovered Thursday that left coins scattered on the ground.
An estimated $100,000 or more in dimes was stolen from the truck, which had collected the U.S. Mint coins and was parked on the lot overnight, the captain of the mint told reporters. Philadelphia policeman, John Ryan.
Officers were called to a Walmart parking lot in northeast Philadelphia shortly after 6 a.m. Thursday for a report of the break-in, which is believed to have occurred overnight, police said in a statement.
helicopter video of NBC Philadelphia He showed the truck with the trailer and coins all over the parking lot.
The truck was headed to Florida, and the driver lives nearby and parked it overnight to leave in the morning, Ryan said, adding that it’s not unusual.
The thief or thieves appeared to have used bolt cutters to get into the truck, which had the bagged dimes on pallets, he said.
«They were trying to load the dimes into other things to take away,» Ryan said. «There are dimes all over the parking lot, all over the street.»
No arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing, police said.
The trailer was unmarked, but that doesn’t mean whoever walked in knew there were dimes inside, Ryan said.
He said there have been cargo thefts in Northeast and South Philadelphia recently, with people stealing lamb and chicken for televisions and alcohol.