A major theft involving over $2.1 million worth of vintage baseball cards has been resolved with the recovery of most of the stolen items. Memory Lane, a Tustin, CA-based company, reported the cards missing on April 18 after their delivery to the Best Western Plus hotel in Strongsville, Ohio.
The cards were intended for display at the Strongsville Sports Collectors Convention.
Jacob Paxton, a 27-year-old former desk clerk at the hotel, has been charged with first-degree felony theft. The theft was discovered when a Memory Lane employee went to retrieve the package and found it missing. Security footage confirmed the box had been delivered.
The stolen cards included rare 1914 Cracker Jack cards, T206 tobacco cards, Brunner’s Bread cards, and high-grade cards of Mickey Mantle and Roberto Clemente.
The Strongsville Police began investigating on April 18 and, following a tip, recovered 52 of the 54 missing cards from a Cleveland property linked to an acquaintance of Paxton. The two missing cards are valued at approximately $90,000.
Memory Lane proceeded with its auction despite the theft, later informing winning bidders of the missing items.
The company expects to receive the recovered cards soon and will offer the winning bidders the option to complete their purchases.
Memory Lane thanked the Strongsville Police for their efforts and requested confidentiality during the investigation to aid in the quick recovery of the stolen cards.