Following the Flags Leads Police to Stolen Antiques in Oklahoma City

By W.A. Demers
Originally published in Antiques and the Arts Online

OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLA. - The Oklahoma City Police Department, working with a noted antiques expert on American flags and a local auction house recovered nearly 100 percent of the antiques that had been stolen from auctioneers Livingston Estate Services in mid-December. Valued at $30,000, the consigned items stolen in an apparent inside burglary included a very rare eight-stripe, 19-star American flag dating back to the early Nineteenth Century, a rare Shepard Hardware picture gallery mechanical bank from 1885, an Emerson Mickey Mouse radio, a large Lalique Bacchantes vase, six small statues, and six gold coins.

The items were recovered on December 31 and some of them - like the mechanical bank - have already been re-offered and sold at Livingston.

The two suspects, a young man and woman who had done some contract work for the auction house, were arrested in the criminal felony case. Brock and Emilee Shumney in their court date on February 4 pleaded not guilty in Oklahoma County court to eight counts of concealing stolen property, referring to eight major consignments. Lack of DNA evidence directly linking them to the theft resulted in the charge of concealing stolen property. A preliminary hearing conference has been set for March 24 in district court.

Flag expert Jeff R. Bridgman of York County, Penn., was instrumental in identifying the stolen flags, which led to the recovery of the entire collection of stolen goods, according to Lyn Livingston, proprietor of Livingston's Estate Services. "If it wasn't for Jeff, we would have never recovered these items. There is so much bad news about this industry, it's good when something positive like this happens," said Ms Livingston.

"I was glad I could help," said Mr Bridgman in a phone interview. "I have had things stolen from me several times and I know what it's like."

The theft occurred sometime between 10 pm on Thursday, December 16, and the following Friday. All of the items that were taken - 618 in total - had been consigned for Livingston's January 2 auction. The thieves also stole more than $1,000 in cash from the auction house's cash boxes. The cash and some silver plate items were the only stolen merchandise not recovered, according to Ms Livingston.

Police reports stated that the intruders apparently entered the gallery through an unoccupied office next door that had no alarm. They got into the office by breaking through the door, then entered the next office through a drop ceiling, avoiding a motion sensor.

After reporting the theft, Ms Livingston remembered Mr Bridgman and his expertise in antique American flags from previous business they had done together. She sent him an email describing the two flags that had been taken - one a centennial 13-star flag about 6 feet in length and the other the 19-star flag - and included pictures of the flags.

"I didn't know about the other stuff that was stolen," said Mr Bridgman, "but I knew as soon as I saw the photo of the 19-star flag that if it was stolen, I would recognize it when I saw it."

Shortly after being alerted by Ms Livingston about the stolen flags, Mr Bridgman received an email from a gentleman who said he was thinking about offering some flags he had on eBay, but didn't have a lot of experience with online auctions and wondered if perhaps Mr Bridgman would have any interest in purchasing the flags from him.

....and a very rare early Nineteenth Century eight-stripe, 19-star American flag of hand-pieced, hand-appliqued construction.
Keeping his eyes open for fresh merchandise is part of Mr. Bridgman's raison d'etre, so he replied to the email "Sure, send them along."

As soon as he received an email with the photo of the 19-star flag, Mr Bridgman knew it was the stolen example. "This was at midnight - I often work until 3 or 4 am - but I knew Lyn would want to know about this right away. I had her cell phone number and called her, forwarded her the email and she called the police.

Even though Ms Livingston immediately recognized the suspect's identity from his email address, the police needed probable cause to issue a search warrant. Working with Mr Bridgman, they crafted a "sting" operation. Mr Bridgman did not make an immediate offer for the flags, but instead engaged the suspects via email, asking questions about the flags. "At one point, he [one of the suspects] emailed me back and said 'I didn't know that they [the flags] were great!'"

Meanwhile, the Oklahoma City Police were closing in and began patrolling the suspects' neighborhood. And the couple unwittingly gave arresting officers a big break by leaving their blinds up in their condo, allowing a passing patrol car to view through the window - unmistakably - one of the stolen flags hanging up on the wall.

If there are any lessons to this cautionary tale it is in the value of the relationships cultivated among auctioneers, antiques dealers and collectors. Ms Livingston said she is less trusting of people after this incident, but she is also heartened by people like Mr Bridgman, who go out of their way to help their colleagues and business associates.