On May 15, 1976, a daring group of thieves devised an audacious plan to rob the Societe Generale bank in Nice, France.
This wasn’t just any bank; it housed what was known as the “Unbreakable Vault,” a fortress-like structure that had never been breached.
However, these criminals pulled off a heist that left the world in disbelief, successfully emptying the vault in a single night.
At the helm of this elaborate scheme was Albert Spaggiari, a photographer with a flair for the dramatic.
Just days before the robbery, Spaggiari rented a locker at the bank under the pretense of storing his belongings.
In reality, he was meticulously documenting every nook and cranny of the bank’s interior, including its security measures.
His cunning plan began to unfold when he set an alarm clock inside his own locker, which rang during the night without triggering any alarms.
This revelation confirmed for him that the vault was indeed unprotected.
To further his plot, Spaggiari took a trip to the local city government office, where he obtained a detailed map of the area.
With this map in hand, he pinpointed the nearest sewer line and calculated that a 26-foot tunnel could be dug directly from there to the bank vault.
To execute this ambitious plan, he enlisted the help of a gangster who assembled a crew for the job.
Working under the cover of darkness, they spent two months digging the tunnel entirely by hand, avoiding the use of machinery to keep their operation under wraps.
Finally, on the night of July 18, the crew made their move.
They entered the bank vault and, over the next 27 hours, filled bags with gold bars and cash while taking breaks for meals.
In a rather cheeky gesture, they left behind a message scrawled on the wall: “Without arms, without hate, without violence.” It was a bold proclamation that underscored the audacity of their crime.
Come the morning of July 19, bank employees arrived for their usual duties, only to find themselves facing a baffling situation.
When they attempted to open the heavy vault door, it wouldn’t budge.
After several failed attempts, they called in the vault’s manufacturers for assistance.
Even the experts were stumped, leading them to drill into the wall to investigate what might be blocking the door.
What they discovered was shocking: the vault door had been sealed shut from the inside.
The realization that the thieves had somehow escaped through a tunnel left investigators scratching their heads.
The police quickly launched an investigation, tracing the tunnel back to the city’s largest underground sewer line, where they uncovered a trove of evidence, including tools and gas cylinders used for welding.
The total value of the stolen goods exceeded $20 million, a staggering sum that would equate to about $110 million today.
Despite extensive efforts, the police struggled to identify the culprits for months.
It wasn’t until October 1976 that a breakthrough occurred.
A member of the gang was apprehended after his girlfriend tipped off authorities.
During questioning, he revealed the identities of his accomplices, including Spaggiari, the mastermind.
Upon his arrest, Spaggiari confessed to the crime but had another trick up his sleeve.
During court proceedings, he produced a coded document detailing his plans, claiming it could only be understood by the judge.
When the judge summoned him to explain, Spaggiari took advantage of the distraction, leaping out of a window and making a swift getaway on a motorcycle that was waiting outside.
Despite the police’s best efforts, Spaggiari vanished without a trace.
Years later, he resurfaced in an Italian television interview, where he expressed a lifelong fascination with treasure hunting, suggesting that this heist was merely a fulfillment of a childhood dream.
The mystery of his whereabouts remained unsolved until his death in 1989, when his mother revealed that his body had been left outside her home, closing the chapter on one of history’s most infamous bank heists.
