Stolen AF 15 CGC 5.0 Wizard Chicago 4 4

[HENRYSPENCER]

5 hours ago, G.A.tor said:

There were cameras but another vendors display obscured Leroy’s booth. So no video 

Then he might want to contact a lawyer.  If the promoters of the show allowed another vendor to set up to where they posed a threat to the safety and security of other vendors at the show this could be brought before a court.  Keep in mind assuming Leroy has liability insurance this incident could affect his relationship with his insurance company.  After paying him out, it's possible they drop coverage which because of the incident he's also a victim of.

The sign show thing has gotten way out of control the last few years.  I was looking at Vincent Zurzolo's Facebook Page and saw Greg Reece's Rare Comics massive billboard size display banner which looked like it was 50 feet above his display booth.  Hell, you could have seen that banner he had up at the convention center upper deck at Wrigley Field.

 

[DR.X]

I will contact three shops in my area in the morning.

[James J Johnson]

1 hour ago, Bomber-Bob said:

Leroy, I'm in shock that this happened. I'm speechless. While I'm sure there are some lessons to be learned here, I don't think it helps to bring them to your attention now.  I just hope you have success in getting the book returned to you. 

It can't hurt to bring everyone's attention to preventive measures. I sincerely hope we can help re-unite Leroy with his property. I know I'll be looking at every AF 15 offered online for a match, but this isn't a case of shutting the door after the horse has left the barn. Leroy has a lot more horses to protect and since apparently, you can't conclusively rely on house surveillance, mentioning loss prevention measures could be beneficial not only to Leroy but everyone who routinely exposes their collectibles publically to potential loss..

[James J Johnson]

1 hour ago, Fan Boy said:

I hate to say, but I suspect there is likely a high chance it would be cracked open, ditch the label and try sell as raw copy. Who know? Just saying ...

Or, submit it as a walk-through to one of the other two grading companies, who of course, should be notified and sent pictures of the book to match against incoming AF 15s and keep watch for.

[Gotham Kid]

Sorry this happened to you Leroy and hope the PoS gets caught and that you get your book back.

Let's hope he, like most criminals, is stupid enough to want to move it quickly and not sit on it for a long time until it gets forgotten.

If it wasn't already mentioned, you should also post on http://stolencomic.com/

 

Edited August 27, 2018 by Gotham Kid

[Parabellum]

This makes me sick to read.  I hope you can recover the book.  Sorry to hear this happened.

[rein2222]

one thing to look out for regarding them selling it online is posting a different pic of a cgc 5.0 maybe one that was sold in the past. 

[Murphman13]

FWIW a raw Hulk 181 was snatched from a wall at Tampa Con a few weeks ago. The dealer's assistant was only a few feet away looking the other direction and the book was actually somehow attached to the rack with tape or a clip. The assistant noticed the rack shaking and books falling and turned to see him with the 181 in hand bolting to the exit (their booth was the closest to the main exit). He wasn't caught. These super hot, liquid books are going to be too much temptation to the professional thief right on down to the desperate amateur. Dealers need to be more diligent than ever before. I think this newest incident has pushed me into investing into some kind of security camera.

Sorry this happened to you Leroy.

[tv horror]

I'm sure you're gutted just because you're doing an honest living and providing a service to the fans. I don't know if this is feasible or not but how about a strong box for your rare comics with just a photo display on the wall, then if you have someone interested you can produce the actual book safely.  

[HENRYSPENCER]

The only other thing I can think of besides security camera's that would help prevent theft would be some kind of 8-foot tall plus metal grid panel fencing that you'd put behind and on both sides of your booth such that no one could stick their hands in and grab anything.  They also wouldn't be able to come in over the top.  Similar idea to those tall racks you see large vendors selling the shirts and Funko's. The only point of entry would then be from the front of the booth.

https://www.globalindustrial.com/p/storage/wire-mesh-partitions/wire-mesh/wire-mesh-panel-5x8?infoParam.campaignId=T9F&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4Nzcs7SN3QIVj1cNCh0wcQfOEAkYASABEgI2FvD_BwE

Edited August 27, 2018 by HENRYSPENCER

[CKinTO]

40 minutes ago, tv horror said:

I'm sure you're gutted just because you're doing an honest living and providing a service to the fans. I don't know if this is feasible or not but how about a strong box for your rare comics with just a photo display on the wall, then if you have someone interested you can produce the actual book safely.  

Very sad that our hobby has this type of scum that ruins it for all of us... I think the above is a good idea, and I know a lot of dealers that do this for their higher level books. I also know some that don't allow any customers "behind the booth" to look at the wall closely specifically because of this risk. Can be annoying as a customer, but I totally understand when that's the policy - easy enough to view the slabs from a distance, and if I want to take a closer look, ask once someone is available. When thefts like this are a real risk, can't begrudge dealers for small inconveniences for buyers...

All in all, definitely hope that the perp is caught, book is returned, and that thefts like these remain few and far between.

[thehumantorch]

1 hour ago, tv horror said:

I'm sure you're gutted just because you're doing an honest living and providing a service to the fans. I don't know if this is feasible or not but how about a strong box for your rare comics with just a photo display on the wall, then if you have someone interested you can produce the actual book safely.  

^{I've been thinking of doing this.  Leave my good books in boxes on the floor and display a high quality photocopy on my wall.}

[comicquant]

1 hour ago, tv horror said:

I'm sure you're gutted just because you're doing an honest living and providing a service to the fans. I don't know if this is feasible or not but how about a strong box for your rare comics with just a photo display on the wall, then if you have someone interested you can produce the actual book safely.  

Sort of like what John Verzyl did.  He would have binders by genre which you could go through and look at printouts of front and back scans.  If you were interested in a book he'd bring it out for you to look at.  At first I wasn't sure what to think of it but soon warmed up to the idea because it was easier than having to scan an entire wall or flip through a bunch of boxes.

[Senormac]

Is it right to think that the thief was a badge wearing attendee ?  I mean, a criminal can't just sneak into one of these shows and walk around with no badge can he ? 

Someone, somewhere had to see it happen.  

[manetteska]

Sorry to hear about this, Leroy. Do you know if it was taken from outside/behind the booth or inside?

[Buzzetta]

42 minutes ago, thehumantorch said:

^{I've been thinking of doing this.  Leave my good books in boxes on the floor and display a high quality photocopy on my wall.}

There was one dealer at NYCC that had photocopies of the good stuff in binders.  If you asked you could see one or two books at the same time after you pointed them out in the binder.  I am probably wrong but I think John Verzyl's booth did that as I believe that was how I bought my ASM 3. 

[SteppinRazor]

What's the likelihood of selling an AF15 or Hulk 181 at a convention?

 

If the book is there for attraction/marketing purposes only, a back wall could be designed out of steel or aluminum, with angle iron/angle AL at the top and bottom on the books, so one would have to slide all the slabs up to the AF15 out of the rack at the side to get it out.

[G.A.tor]

2 hours ago, SteppinRazor said:

What's the likelihood of selling an AF15 or Hulk 181 at a convention?

 

If the book is there for attraction/marketing purposes only, a back wall could be designed out of steel or aluminum, with angle iron/angle AL at the top and bottom on the books, so one would have to slide all the slabs up to the AF15 out of the rack at the side to get it out.

Ive sold multiple Hulk 181 and af15 at same con. I’ve sold action 1 and superman 1 and tec 27 etc. at cons. Likelihood of selling is 0% if you don’t bring but 100% potential if you do bring

 

every book i bring (and I suspect most all dealers) i have the intention of potentially selling 

Edited August 27, 2018 by G.A.tor

[Cat]

Sorry to hear this. Hope they catch the jerk, and that your property is swiftly returned. 

[WoWitHurts]

2 hours ago, Senormac said:

Is it right to think that the thief was a badge wearing attendee ?  I mean, a criminal can't just sneak into one of these shows and walk around with no badge can he ? 

Someone, somewhere had to see it happen.  

You can walk right in if you want to. Just wait for a group of people. They just ask to see your wrists, you could just hold up your wrist and keep walking. Very porous gates.