Brangelina baby shower photo bandit busted
Update:
TMZ has uncovered the story behind the stolen Brangelina baby shower photos!
Here’s how the photos were probably stolen… James Haven, Angelina’s brother, was the original photographer. His camera broke upon his return home, his camera broke so he brought it into Best Buy, where it had been purchased, and asked for it to be repaired per its warranty. Best Buy then sent the camera to Precision Camera and Video Repair in Enfield, CT. According to sources who spoke with TMZ, Bill Keyes and Adam Beckwith, two of the repair shop employees downloaded the photos from the camera and showed them around and allegedly offered them for sale.
While we are not sure if it was Keyes or Beckwith who contacted us, we received an email on Thursday from someone claiming to have the images. The email said, "I am contacting you and several otherPapers, magazines and websites to see what these photos may be worth." They attached three of the images as evidence that they had such a memory stick. Other sites and magazines in the To: line were Star Magazine, People Magazine and celebrity8×10s.com. Click the extended post to see the email.
The FBI and Massachusetts authorities raided Bill Keyes’ Westfield, MA home and seized his computer, which presumably contained the stolen images. The camera was also seized at the repair shop.
A Westfield police department sergeant said the neither of the men were arrested because their man violated Massachusetts law. The case is now in the hands of the Los Angeles County District Attorney because apparently a law was violated in California. The Los Angeles DA’s office had no comment for TMZ because the investigation is open but no charges have been filed.
John Malinosky, President of Precision Camera and Video Repair said he was unaware of the search and told TMZ , "We have absolutely no knowledge of this." The men may not have been arrested but I am guessing they are out of a job.
Source: TMZ and New York Daily News
From: xxx@comcast.net
To: [redacted]
Date: Thu, 22 Jun 2006 22:11:25 +0000Dear Sir or Madam,
Iam contacting you because I have recently acquired some digital photos(450 pictures). On this memory stick are personal photos of AngelinaJolie and Brad Pitt and their children. These photos are in thier homeand on vacation, are good quality and are close up. These pictures havenot been seen by anyone else. I am contacting you and several otherPapers, magazines and websites to see what these photos may be worth. Iam attaching 3 photos so you can verify the authenticity of them. Youcan contact me through this e-mail address: xxx@comcast.net
- Posted on Jun 29, 06 at 3:50PM
- Permalink
- 32 Comments
June 29th, 2006 at 1:43 pm
Impressive! For the FBI, that is.
June 29th, 2006 at 3:27 pm
Wow, with all the other things going on in both the US and this world, did the FBI really have nothing better to get involved in?!
June 29th, 2006 at 4:01 pm
Yeah I know what you mean Karen, Brad & Angelina are celebs and all but I’m really sure tracking down their baby picture thieves are that much more important than UBL or whoever else. Sheez!
June 29th, 2006 at 4:01 pm
HMMMMMM
and i thought all people were created equal
if you have money
June 29th, 2006 at 4:02 pm
James Haven must feel pretty bad that it was his pictures that were stolen. I knew it had to be someone close to them since there were apparently over 400 pics which means the person was around them for awhile. I’m glad they have it all sorted out.
June 29th, 2006 at 4:12 pm
This one hits close to home, literally! I practically pooped myself when I read this! I live in Enfield, CT and I know right where the shop is they are talking about, crazyness! Ok, so now the bigger question is, is James Haven living in Enfield, CT? Umm, tell me not? But of all the places, if he went to LA and went to their Best Buy to return the camera for fixing and they sent it all the way to Enfield, CT for fixing, that is ODD! ?? I’m just befuddled!
June 29th, 2006 at 4:12 pm
This one hits close to home, literally! I practically pooped myself when I read this! I live in Enfield, CT and I know right where the shop is they are talking about, crazyness! Ok, so now the bigger question is, is James Haven living in Enfield, CT? Umm, tell me not? But of all the places, if he went to LA and went to their Best Buy to return the camera for fixing and they sent it all the way to Enfield, CT for fixing, that is ODD! ?? I’m just befuddled!
June 29th, 2006 at 4:14 pm
I am glad to know that the pictures were actually stollen and not “leaked” by an insider (I guess in this case it would be James). Now at least having this mystery solved will allow the country to sleep better at night (said with tongue in cheek) lol
June 29th, 2006 at 4:20 pm
Wow….just wow.
I do feel bad for them but it was nice seeing candids of them.
June 29th, 2006 at 4:41 pm
Who really cares? I’m getting so sick of all the Brad & Angelina drama – and I’m a fan!
In the grand scheme of things this is not a big deal. I’m glad they figured out what happened but this is not a National crisis. The fact that the FBI got involved is troubling to me. Don’t they have better things to be worrying about, like terrorism, to name just one.
Yes, Brand and Angelina’s privacy was invaded. A crime has been committed and it needs to be dealt with. Let their lawyers handle it & let the FBI get back to more important issues!
June 29th, 2006 at 5:03 pm
Gargoylegurl, I agree. In fact, I always agree with your posts, LOL. You always save me so much typing. ;0)
June 29th, 2006 at 5:10 pm
Thanks DeviantMnd! I am always typing away like crazy on here, aren’t I. I need to get a life! LOL
June 29th, 2006 at 5:15 pm
Danielle, you may want to remove the identifying information from that second hyperlink. The second xxx@comcast.net shows an actual email address.
June 29th, 2006 at 5:27 pm
Not sure that the FBI should be involved but taking those photos is a crime and they should have been arrested. Not matter who they stole them from. Letting them get away with it is incredibly wrong.
June 29th, 2006 at 5:41 pm
I don’t think the FBI was involved just because of Brad/Angelina. They solve interstate crimes. While some say they have more important jobs to do, you have to remember that a crime affects the victim. For example, if you were a victim of hit and run, you’d want the police to find the person, even though there are murders to be solved, right? The FBI has different departments for different crimes, this just made the news because of the celeb tie. They’re not taking away resources from the more serious issues.
June 29th, 2006 at 6:01 pm
Danielle, also I think you meant “redacted,” not “didacted.” The typo or whatever gave me a smile, though!
June 29th, 2006 at 8:29 pm
I just got my camera repaired by Precision Camera. That is where Circuit City sends their warrantied cameras to be fixed. The big box stores all use the same place.
I want to know why James sent the memory card along with the camera?? The instructions they sent me said not to include any accessories unless you thought they were part of the problem. Even if the memory card was the problem, if I had pictures of a famous family member on there I would NOT send it.
June 29th, 2006 at 8:53 pm
Okay, the more I think about this story, the more it doesn’t make sense to me.
First off I have a hard time believing that Angelina’s brother would submit that camera for repair with all those photos still on it. Would he not upload & erase the pics first? Let’s say the camera was broken to the point where he was not able to upload & erase, would he be dumb enough to walk into a Best Buy and drop off a camera containing photos of Angelina & Brad. I doubt it!
Secondly, I highly doubt that James Haven, an actor in his own right as well as Angelina’s brother, would be taking his camera into Best Buy for repairs. It’s my understanding that famous people have very well screened, trustworthy people & companies that handle their every day affairs. I just don’t see him walking into Best Buy and dropping off a camera to any old customer service person. Not likely!
I also question the accuracy of anything that TMZ reports. I’m also wondering if the involvement of the FBI is bogus too.
As someone pointed out above, the FBI handles interstate crimes, but really think about it, the FBI? We’re not talking about a national treasure that’s been stolen here, or a bank robbery, it’s photographs of Angelina and Brad. Yes, the police should be involved but the FBI? Give me a break! lol
June 29th, 2006 at 9:05 pm
Well said gargoylegurl! I completely agree with you.
June 29th, 2006 at 9:30 pm
It’s not such a huge deal that the FBI is involved. After all, they are just a kind of federal investigator/police. They have jurisdiction over 200 categories, not just counterterrorism, organized crime, kidnapping, etc. They also handle cybercrime, major thefts, casino gambling, jewelry theft and so on. Pretty much anytime a crime crosses state lines, the FBI can get involved.
June 29th, 2006 at 9:42 pm
Yeah, I guess it is possible that the FBI is involved, it just seems so extreme. I just always think of major bank robberies and serial killers when the FBI is involved.
Danielle, do you think that the TMZ report is accurate? I know you just reported it as “in the news”, I’m just curious if you think it’s credible or not?
June 29th, 2006 at 9:48 pm
Gargoylegurl, yes I think the FBI is involved. If you look at the Daily News article, they mention federal authorities getting involved. Federal authorities=FBI
By the way, I know about this kind of stuff because I majored in criminology in college (my senior thesis was about crime statistics) and even had 1 semester of a criminal justice doctoral program. I wanted to be in the FBI since I was 16 even though I knew it wasn’t all Silence of the Lambs type jobs. I even applied for a college internship (yes they have them).
June 29th, 2006 at 10:00 pm
That would definitely be a fascinating job!
Danielle, I was actually wondering what your personal opinion was regarding the story in general, not so much the FBI involvement, but the whole deal with Angelina’s brother dropping the camera off at Best Buy?
June 29th, 2006 at 10:08 pm
Those 2 guys should be fired. Stealing those pictures & trying to profit off them was so shady.
June 29th, 2006 at 10:41 pm
I don’t think it’s so unusual for James Haven to go to Best Buy. You’d have to know that he’s Angelina’s brother and what he looks like in order to recognize him and your average Best Buy shopper/American probably has no recollection of Angelina’s declaration of love for him when she won the Oscar so… my guess is he’s pretty anonymous and probably goes to Best Buy and the mall like the rest of us schlubs.
As for believing that he dropped the camera off with the memory card in it… I am sure they tell you not to do that but he might have forgotten! He’s only Angelina’s brother, he’s not perfect!
June 29th, 2006 at 11:27 pm
The reason why the FBI is involved has to do with the type of crime and jurisdiction, especially since more than one state is involved.
I believe people have a misperception about what the FBI does and they actually have a wider scope of responsibility than most people know.
I am glad they did their job and I am glad the idiots who tried to profit off of someone else’s possession were caught
June 30th, 2006 at 1:50 am
Well said, Lorelei.
June 30th, 2006 at 5:20 am
So I work at Best Buy and I think something is fishy with this story simply because when you go in to drop something off with Geek Squad, they check it over completely and detach all accessories…so a memory card should have never been left to begin with…they shouldn’t ever leave the battery either unless that’s part of the problem and most times the memory stick and battery are in the same compartment so it shouldn’t have been missed.
Now as far as sending it to some small town where Precision Camera Repair is, that is true…it doesn’t matter where you live, there are repair centers in some “never heard of cities unless you lived there” places. I don’t know…something seems kind of odd still…
June 30th, 2006 at 5:59 am
I know that some of you are criticizing those people for stealing the pics, etc., however how many websites still published the pics anyhow (and how many probably still have them on their harddrives somewhere?
)
July 1st, 2006 at 1:42 am
This is a sick situation and a real invasion of privacy.
July 1st, 2006 at 10:33 am
Lynn,
I know how you feel! I live in Westfield, a small suburb in which NOTHING happens. I couldn’t believe it when the article said the FBI searched a home in Westfield..haha I need to look into this.
July 3rd, 2006 at 2:57 pm
I think that the two employees should definitely get fired. There is a difference between going home & downloading pictures on the internet and going to work & stealing pictures from someone else’s camera. When you’re at work, you’re supposed to be professional. Stealing is not only unprofessional, but it’s also against work policies AND against the law.
I agree that James Haven shouldn’t have left the memory card in the camera, but since when are we all perfect?? We all make mistakes & I’m sure the first thing on his mind wasn’t that people were going to steal the pictures. Anyways, forget about him, Angelina, & Brad and how popular they are. That should have very little to do with it. James was trying to have his camera fixed & he thought he was giving it to a place where he could trust the people. That trust was taken from him AND Brad & Angelina. Popular or not, wouldn’t any of you feel violated if your pictures were stolen & exposed???
Those two employees should get fired for doing such an idiotic thing. And who knows if something like this would happen again… If they do stay there, the only lesson they’ll learn is to be more careful not to get caught again.