1978 Lufthansa heist at JFK Airport

On December 11, 1978, robbers stole an estimated $5 million in cash and $875,000 in jewelry from the Lufthansa cargo terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport. The theft, known as the Lufthansa heist, was one of the largest cash robberies in U.S. history at the time. Several participants were later convicted or murdered in the years following the robbery, and investigations linked the crime to organized-crime figures. The heist has been widely covered in books, documentaries, and dramatized films.