National Treasure (2004) is an action adventure thriller starring Nicolas Cage, Jon Voight, and Harvey Keitel.
Here’s the premise: Historian Benjamin Franklin Gates races to find the legendary Templar Treasure before a team of mercenaries. When Ben tips the FBI about the possible theft of the Declaration of Independence, they don’t believe him. However, after it’s stolen, the FBI, led by Agent Peter Sadusky, begins tracking Ben in order to recover the historical document.
I credit loyal listener Professor Plunkett for suggesting I review National Treasure. He asked how likely it was for the same squad of agents in the movie to continue their involvement in the investigation once the subjects fled from Washington, D.C. to Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston. My answer is, it’s plausible. The initial crime is the theft of the Declaration of Independence from the National Archives Museum. The D.C. agents could set leads for agents assigned to the other cities to conduct investigations on their behalf. However, given the document’s prominence, it is likely they would receive authorization to travel to the different locations to gather evidence and arrest the bad guys.
When looking for more teachable moments in the film to discuss FBI policy and procedures, the Art Crime Team is a logical topic.
Established in 2004, the Art Crime Team comprises twenty-four agents assigned to field offices nationwide and ready to be deployed around the world to tackle art crime. Their cases involve the theft of valuable works of art and cultural antiquities. Similar to what happens with the Declaration of Independence in the movie National Treasure, these stolen properties have historical significance and are part of our cultural heritage. Some are fraud investigations where private collectors who believed they possessed valuable works of art or rare memorabilia discover the items’ certificates of authenticity, also referred to as provenance documents, are fake.
In both situations, by utilizing their training, experience, and resources, the Art Crime Team aims to return the items to their rightful owners or identify and arrest the fraudster. Learn more about the FBI’s Art Crime Team here.
I have not yet interviewed a retired Art Crime Team member on FBI Retired Case File Review. I had been holding out for my buddy Bob Wittman. I know exactly which one of his cases I would ask him to review. In the meantime, I plan to invite other retired team members to be guests on the podcast.
It should be noted that agents have been working on art cases long before the formation of the Art Crime Team. Listen to the following property crime case reviews about the theft and recovery of rare documents and books:
312: John Ouellet – Bibliomania Book Bandit, Stephen Blumberg
116: Dan Reilly – Rare Document Theft, Charles Merrill Mount
022: Bob Bazin – Art Crime Rodin Museum Armed Robbery
