Uncovering history: FBI solves 50-year-old cold case

The FBI Art Crime Team has been in operation since 2004, recovering more than 15,000 items valued at over $800 million in total since its founding. Most recently, the team launched an investigation of a cold case from 50 years ago: the mystery of 50 stolen artifacts across five states, including Pennsylvania. FBI Art Crime

Special Agent Jake Archer calls this burglary “one of the largest of its kind that we’re aware of.”

In 2009, a cold case investigation was re-opened by detectives from Upper Merion Township and the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office. It was a 50-year-old crime which included artifacts, such as firearms from Valley Forge Historical Society and others from the French and Indian War in 1754. Many hold the stories of soldiers, such as the World War II battlefield pickup pistol from General Omar Bradley, which was stolen from the U.S. Army War College Museum.

In a display of passion for American history, U.S. History teacher Michael Palmatier often discusses topics regarding various types of artifacts with his colleagues. He believes in the importance of preserving historical artifacts. “I think artifacts are essential because they bring us so much closer to the authentic past,” Palmatier said. “Artifacts are a way of telling a story.”

In August 2022, the thief, Michael Corbett of Newark, Delaware, pleaded guilty to the possession of the stolen items, claiming that his intent was not to sell, but to collect. Corbett’s sentence was a day in jail and a $65,000 fine.

On March 13, the artifacts returned to their 17 original institutions, including the Museum of American Revolution. ZeeAnn Mason, the Chief Operating Officer of the Museum of American Revolution in Philadelphia, explains how Corbett stole the artifacts.

“When the items that were recently repatriated were stolen, security measures at many museums, especially smaller historical societies, were lax,” Mason said. “They didn’t have the type of security cameras, alarm systems and secure cases most museums have today.”

After the 2009 case reopening, anonymous sources revealed information regarding the theft until it led to Corbett, solving the burglaries that spanned from 1968 to 1979. Mason is appreciative of the effort put into the artifacts’ reclamation so they can be displayed to the public once again.

“We are grateful to the FBI’s Art Crime Team who worked diligently with other law enforcement agencies to recover and repatriate these items,” Mason said. “It is always a terrible thing to see anything stolen, especially artifacts that are often irreplaceable. Once (the artifacts) were recovered, it was no small task to determine where the items were stolen from.”

School board to replace Devon and Hillside Elementary playgrounds

For the past year, the members of the school board’s Facilities Committee discussed possible ways to make the elementary schools’ playgrounds more accessible, safe and fun for the students. During January and February, the committee created a plan to install new and accessible playground equipment. The committee planned to replace the playgrounds of Devon and Hillside Elementary Schools first since they are the most outdated, and then move on to the rest of the schools in the district.

The new playground design plan is based on input from both Devon and Hillside Elementary Schools on which aspects of the playground are in bad condition or outdated and which need to be replaced or revamped. According to Facilities Committee chair Michelle Burger, the school board created this project to provide funding and improve the playgrounds for all students.

“Playground equipment has not been part of the district’s infrastructure plan. Instead, PTOs would raise money to donate new equipment, and while they have been very generous with these donations, we knew that this current practice wasn’t sustainable or equitable,” Burger said. “We also wanted to ensure that there would be new equipment accessible to students with mobility issues.”

The new playgrounds will have a smooth rubberized surface instead of a rough mulch terrain. The schools will also be outfitted with an AstroTurf field, all-ability chairs and tables for wheelchair support. Finally, the two elementary schools will install new playground equipment and colorful paintings. For Devon Elementary School PTO President Nicole Brigham, the new playgrounds’ greater safety is the most important aspect of the replacements.

“I don’t think the kids care what the equipment or playground actually looks like, they just want to use the equipment,” Brigham said. “Safety and the new accessibility that this equip- ment will provide is the most important thing.”

Not only will the new playgrounds allow for greater entertainment, safety and accessibility, but they will also significantly reduce the maintenance of the facilities, as well. According to Burger, the rubberized ground will reduce the annual cost and maintenance hours required with the current mulch.

“The district currently uses mulch under and around the play areas that require it, which costs approximately $60,000 per year, along with multiple labor hours to install it,” Burger said. “Replacing the mulch with a material that allows the equipment to be used more frequently — regardless of the previous day’s weather — was a goal shared by the elementary school principals and (school) board.”

According to Burger, replacing the playgrounds is a worthy investment of time and money so that all elementary students in the district can equally enjoy their recess time.

“Play is an integral part of learning at the elementary school level. These improvements support all children regardless of their abilities allowing them equal access to play equipment,” Burger said. “The use of rubberized surface instead of mulch removes physical barriers and allows for out- door recess to take place more often since there won’t be mud and puddles under and around the equipment.”