Hello Everyone, I emailed Mr. Emmermann yesterday, thanking him for his assistance in capturing the thieves. This was, in part, his reply to me:
>I do not feel that I deserve so much credit... >I just chose NOT to turn away while I saw a crime in >progress. That's in fact a logical thing to do because, if >you think about it,.... wouldn't the world be a better >place if that were common practice? Nice guy, eh? -Walter ----------------------------------------------- Walter Branch, Ph.D. Branch Meteorites 322 Stephenson Ave., Suite B Savannah, GA 31405 USA www.branchmeteorites.com ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ron Baalke" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Meteorite Mailing List" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, July 26, 2002 8:31 PM Subject: [meteorite-list] Collector's Morals Let FBI To Moon Rocks Sale > > > http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/space/1507785 > > Collector's morals led FBI to moon rocks sale > By MARK CARREAU and ROMA KHANNA > Houston Chronicle > July 25, 2002 > > As it turned out, Belgian rock collector Axel Emmermann > had a conscience. > > The 50-year-old chemist with a passion for > phosphorescent minerals was a poor prospect for a > bizarre offer to buy moon rocks and meteorites stolen > from NASA's Johnson Space Center. > > When Emmermann and others in the Mineralogy Club of > Antwerp, Belgium, received an e-mail inquiry in > May titled "Priceless Moon Rocks Now Available," he > reported the strange overture to the Tampa, Fla., > office of the FBI. > > Last weekend, his tip led to the FBI's recovery of 10 > ounces of moon rocks and meteorites stolen from JSC > earlier this month as well as the arrest of a NASA co-op > student, a summer intern and a third suspect. A > second NASA summer intern was arrested in Houston > on Monday and charged in the heist as well. > > "I know Neil Armstrong, his successors and a lot of > brave men risked their lives getting those stones, and > they belong to the American public, the American > government and NASA," Emmermann said Wednesday > in a telephone interview from his home in Mortsel, south > of Antwerp. > > "I couldn't bring myself to buy anything. It's > wrong, and no one should make money out of those > rocks. I find it appalling and immoral." > > Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first to > walk on the moon 33 years ago this week, as > the commander and pilot of Apollo 11. Five more > Apollo missions reached the lunar surface with 10 > more astronauts before the program ended in > December 1972. > > All told, they returned to Earth 842 pounds of lunar > rock and soil, which was stored at Johnson. > > According to federal authorities, Thad Ryan > Roberts, 25, the NASA co-op, along with interns > Tiffany Brooke Fowler, 22, and Shae Lynn Saur, > 19, broke into a NASA lab on July 13 and > removed a 600-pound safe containing 5 ounces of > moon rock and 5 ounces of meteoritic material. > > While investigators placed the scientific value of the > recovered moon rock and dust at $1 million, the value of > the rare material to collectors is estimated at more than > $565 million. > > According to the FBI, Roberts and Fowler late last week > drove the stolen materials to Orlando, Fla., where they > expected to sell at least some of the rare cache to people > they thought were Emmermann's brother and > sister-in-law. Roberts and Fowler were met in Florida > before the transaction by Gordon Sean McWhorter, 26, of > Utah, an unemployed friend of Roberts', authorities said. > > The strange caper began on May 9, when the Mineralogy > Club of Antwerp, which maintains a prominent Web site > for rock collectors, received the unsolicited moon rock > e-mail from "Orb Robinson" that stated in part, "If you > have an interest in purchasing a rare and historically > significant piece of the moon, and would like more > information, then please contact me." > > Emmermann received a similar e-mail that stated in part, > "Greetings, My name is Orb Robinson from Tampa, Fl. I > have in my possession a rare multi-karat moon rock I am > trying to find a buyer for ... " > > As the investigation unfolded, authorities identified "Orb > Robinson" as Roberts and the source of his e-mails as > computers at the Johnson Space Center, the Houston > Public Library and the University of Utah. Roberts > attended the Utah school, where he was majoring in > physics, geology and geophysics. > > While Emmermann's fellow club members dismissed > thee-mail pitch, he could not. > > "Robinson, I thought, was probably quite an educated > man," Emmermann recalled. "So, I took him seriously, > and I said let's look into this." > > The Belgian responded and after a further exchange > decided "Orb Robinson" would not be so brazen if he > were attempting to peddle materials that were > counterfeit. > > On May 24, Emmermann used e-mail to alert the FBI > office in Tampa, which coincidentally is the site of a > federal task force that specializes in the investigation of > Internet crime. > > Over the summer, the FBI coached Emmermann in a > series of e-mail negotiations with the mysterious moon > rock merchant. Eventually, the Belgian persuaded "Orb > Robinson" to meet with his brother and sister-in-law in > Orlando, fictitious participants in the scheme who were > really undercover investigators. > > Just a few days before the encounter, FBI agents > messaged Emmermann that they were preparing arrest > warrants. On Tuesday, authorities formally > acknowledged that he had played a pivotal role in the > case. > > The Belgian said the case made him recall that in 1978, > the U.S. ambassador to his country made the rare loan of > some heavily guarded moon rocks to the Antwerp club for > an exhibit. > > "We have paid our debt to NASA in full by stopping this > conspiracy," Emmermann said Wednesday. > > Meanwhile, Roberts and McWhorter appeared in a > Tampa federal court hearing on Wednesday to seek > release on bail. > > During the appearance, McWhorter "shot his mouth off," > said his court-appointed attorney. Daniel Daly advised > his client not to address the judge, but McWhorter said > he wanted to make a statement, according to courtroom > observers. > > McWhorter said he just wanted to go home and take care > of his cat. He said he did not understand why the judge > thought he might flee. The judge admonished McWhorter, > telling him he did not take the charges seriously enough. > > When told he could face more than five years in prison, > McWhorter became animated. > > "They are trying to crucify me," he said, according to > observers. > > McWhorter and Roberts could be released on bail as > early as today. If family members are willing, the men will > be released on $25,000 bail. Fowler and Saur were > released on bail earlier this week. > > > ______________________________________________ > Meteorite-list mailing list > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list > ______________________________________________ Meteorite-list mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/meteorite-list
