The perfect heist :
Lafleur, Jarret M.; Purvis, Liston K.; Roesler, Alexander R.
Of the many facets of the criminal world, few have captured societys fascination as has that of high stakes robbery. The combination of meticulousness, cunning, and audacity required to execute a real-life Oceans Eleven may be uncommon among criminals, but fortunately it is common enough to extract a wealth of lessons for the protection of high-value assets. To assist in informing the analyses and decisions of security professionals, this paper surveys 23 sophisticated and high-value heists that have occurred or been attempted around the world, particularly over the past three decades. The results, compiled in a Heist Methods and Characteristics Database, have been analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively, with the goals of both identifying common characteristics and characterizing the range and diversity of criminal methods used. The analysis is focused in six areas: (1) Defeated Security Measures and Devices, (2) Deception Methods, (3) Timing, (4) Weapons, (5) Resources, and (6) Insiders.