Starred review from December 14, 2009
Campbell, the author of Blood Diamonds
, teams with fellow blood diamond expert and lawyer Selby for a fascinating chronicle of the $108 million theft at the Antwerp Diamond Center on February 15, 2003. Documenting every detail, they begin with Leonardo Notarbartolo, who rented an office in the Diamond Center, from which, over a two-year period, he surveyed all angles of the supposedly impenetrable subterranean vault. His photos were used by his Italian partners in crime to construct a replica rehearsal vault. The theft was “devastating and embarrassing” for the diamond district and threatened the city’s major industry. In reconstructing the heist and aftermath, the authors take the reader through every step to show how the thieves were able to get past 10 layers of security, including surveillance cameras, electronic sensors, and a double-locked foot-thick steel door. Although the authors encountered “conflicting details, divergent opinions, and incongruous theories,” numerous interviews (including with Notarbartolo in prison) and key documents enabled them to assemble a “triangulation of facts from reliable sources.” Like a finely cut gem, this well-polished, multifaceted book sparkles. Maps.