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Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History
"Tells the story with the gripping pace of a true-crime 'Ocean's Eleven.'" The New York Post
The Antwerp Diamond Center was one of the most secure buildings in the world. With hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of diamonds stored in its subterranean vault, it had to be. Located in the heart of Belgium's ultra-secure Antwerp Diamond District, it benefited from two police stations, armed patrols, extensive video surveillance, and vehicle barriers securing an area where 80 percent of the world's diamonds traded hands. But on February 15, 2003, a band of skilled Italian thieves -- fronted by the charming Leonardo Notarbartolo, who spent over two years clandestinely casing the building -- subverted every one of the Diamond Center's defenses and made off with a record amount of loot. Experts estimate they got away with nearly half a billion dollars in diamonds, cash and other valuables. They'd pulled off the biggest heist in history--everybody loves diamonds and they now had more than any thief before them. The robbers did it with stealth and smarts; no one was hurt or even threatened during what was quickly labeled the largest diamond heist in history. The bandits -- members of a group of professional thieves known as "The School of Turin" -- used cunning in lieu of violence, successfully evading security cameras, thwarting an array of electronic sensors, and penetrating a vault protected by a double-locked foot-thick steel door. Even when the police zeroed in on who committed the crime, how it was done remained a mystery, like something out of a heist movie or TV show. Flawless is a fast-paced global scavenger hunt uncovering the truth behind the daring Valentine's Day weekend heist. Tracking clues, sources, and documents throughout Europe -- from seedy cafés in Turin, Italy to sleek diamond offices in Antwerp, Belgium -- authors Scott Selby and Greg Campbell retrace Notarbartolo's careful discovery of the building's security flaws. They recreate the heist and its aftermath -- detailing how the thieves brilliantly neutralized each element of the security protecting the Diamond Center's vault while inviting the readers into the secretive world of diamonds and diamond dealing. The result is a thrilling ride through the better-than-fiction heist of the century. "Like a diamond, this true-life caper is clear, colorful, and brilliant." Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Fans of caper books and movies will be in seventh heaven." Booklist (starred review)
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Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History
"Tells the story with the gripping pace of a true-crime 'Ocean's Eleven.'" The New York Post
The Antwerp Diamond Center was one of the most secure buildings in the world. With hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of diamonds stored in its subterranean vault, it had to be. Located in the heart of Belgium's ultra-secure Antwerp Diamond District, it benefited from two police stations, armed patrols, extensive video surveillance, and vehicle barriers securing an area where 80 percent of the world's diamonds traded hands. But on February 15, 2003, a band of skilled Italian thieves -- fronted by the charming Leonardo Notarbartolo, who spent over two years clandestinely casing the building -- subverted every one of the Diamond Center's defenses and made off with a record amount of loot. Experts estimate they got away with nearly half a billion dollars in diamonds, cash and other valuables. They'd pulled off the biggest heist in history--everybody loves diamonds and they now had more than any thief before them. The robbers did it with stealth and smarts; no one was hurt or even threatened during what was quickly labeled the largest diamond heist in history. The bandits -- members of a group of professional thieves known as "The School of Turin" -- used cunning in lieu of violence, successfully evading security cameras, thwarting an array of electronic sensors, and penetrating a vault protected by a double-locked foot-thick steel door. Even when the police zeroed in on who committed the crime, how it was done remained a mystery, like something out of a heist movie or TV show. Flawless is a fast-paced global scavenger hunt uncovering the truth behind the daring Valentine's Day weekend heist. Tracking clues, sources, and documents throughout Europe -- from seedy cafés in Turin, Italy to sleek diamond offices in Antwerp, Belgium -- authors Scott Selby and Greg Campbell retrace Notarbartolo's careful discovery of the building's security flaws. They recreate the heist and its aftermath -- detailing how the thieves brilliantly neutralized each element of the security protecting the Diamond Center's vault while inviting the readers into the secretive world of diamonds and diamond dealing. The result is a thrilling ride through the better-than-fiction heist of the century. "Like a diamond, this true-life caper is clear, colorful, and brilliant." Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Fans of caper books and movies will be in seventh heaven." Booklist (starred review)
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Flawless: Inside the Largest Diamond Heist in History
"Tells the story with the gripping pace of a true-crime 'Ocean's Eleven.'" The New York Post
The Antwerp Diamond Center was one of the most secure buildings in the world. With hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of diamonds stored in its subterranean vault, it had to be. Located in the heart of Belgium's ultra-secure Antwerp Diamond District, it benefited from two police stations, armed patrols, extensive video surveillance, and vehicle barriers securing an area where 80 percent of the world's diamonds traded hands. But on February 15, 2003, a band of skilled Italian thieves -- fronted by the charming Leonardo Notarbartolo, who spent over two years clandestinely casing the building -- subverted every one of the Diamond Center's defenses and made off with a record amount of loot. Experts estimate they got away with nearly half a billion dollars in diamonds, cash and other valuables. They'd pulled off the biggest heist in history--everybody loves diamonds and they now had more than any thief before them. The robbers did it with stealth and smarts; no one was hurt or even threatened during what was quickly labeled the largest diamond heist in history. The bandits -- members of a group of professional thieves known as "The School of Turin" -- used cunning in lieu of violence, successfully evading security cameras, thwarting an array of electronic sensors, and penetrating a vault protected by a double-locked foot-thick steel door. Even when the police zeroed in on who committed the crime, how it was done remained a mystery, like something out of a heist movie or TV show. Flawless is a fast-paced global scavenger hunt uncovering the truth behind the daring Valentine's Day weekend heist. Tracking clues, sources, and documents throughout Europe -- from seedy cafés in Turin, Italy to sleek diamond offices in Antwerp, Belgium -- authors Scott Selby and Greg Campbell retrace Notarbartolo's careful discovery of the building's security flaws. They recreate the heist and its aftermath -- detailing how the thieves brilliantly neutralized each element of the security protecting the Diamond Center's vault while inviting the readers into the secretive world of diamonds and diamond dealing. The result is a thrilling ride through the better-than-fiction heist of the century. "Like a diamond, this true-life caper is clear, colorful, and brilliant." Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Fans of caper books and movies will be in seventh heaven." Booklist (starred review)
Scott Andrew Selby is a graduate of UC Berkeley, Harvard Law School, and Sweden's Lund University, where he wrote his master's thesis on diamonds.
Don Hagen started narrating audiobooks in 1997, as a volunteer at Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic (RFB&D), which was recently renamed Learning Ally. Don has spent time in a variety of booths. His voice has been heard on a wide range of projects, from radio/TV commercials to documentaries to audiobooks. In addition to his freelance voice work, he is a member of the audiobook narration team at the Library of Congress. But he spends most of his time recording commercial audiobooks in his home studio in a neighborhood of Washington, DC.
What People are Saying About This
Douglas Preston
"With Flawless, Scott Andrew Selby and Greg Campbell take the genre of true crime to a new level. Reading it, you realize that sometimes reality can be more fantastic than most action films."--(Douglas Preston and Mario Spezi, New York Times bestselling authors of The Monster of Florence)
Julian Rubinstein
"In Flawless, Selby and Campbell expertly dissect this audacious crime in a compellingly expansive investigation ranging from the intricacies of the diamond industry to the history of the mob in Italy. A story that could have been ripped from the pages of a movie script but which is rooted in fact, Flawless is a rare true crime story-a real diamond in the rough."--(Julian Rubinstein, author of Ballad of the Whiskey Robber)
Lee Gruenfeld
"That real life often outdoes fiction is no longer surprising, but when a true story is brilliantly told, it's a discovery worth shouting about. Flawless will leave you gasping as the authors gradually peel back the covers on one of the most audacious acts of high stakes mischief in the history of thievery."--(Lee Gruenfeld, co-author of Confessions of a Master Jewel Thief)
Tom Zoellner
"[D]azzling. Scott Andrew Selby and Greg Campbell take us into the minds of top-drawer jewel thieves who view every lock as a challenge, every cop as a fool and everyone else's diamonds as their own birthright. Handle with discretion-you might be up all night reading."--(Tom Zoellner, author of The Heartless Stone and Uranium)
Gregg Olsen
"The first 'must-be-read-with-popcorn' book ever. Selby and Campbell's propulsive and cinematic narrative shimmers with truth, hubris and knowing details. I loved it."--(Gregg Olsen, New York Times bestselling author of Starvation Heights)
Ulrich Boser
"Part whodunit, part mob tell-all, part diamond underworld reportage, Flawless is simply too good to miss."--(Ulrich Boser, author of The Gardner Heist)
