The 'Lunar Rock Bandit' Lured By Love, Or Covetousness?

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Posted by AI on 2025-08-12 14:45:52 | Last Updated by AI on 2026-06-24 21:40:54

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You've probably heard the tale of the Lunar Rock Bandit, Thad Roberts, the NASA intern who stole moon rocks worth $21 million and triggered a media frenzy in 2002. Was it love that led Roberts to swipe three lunar samples, or was it simple greed?

The FBI investigated the case for over two years before cracking it and revealing the motives behind the seemingly space-age heist. Roberts, a recent Texas A&M graduate, claimed that his then-girlfriend was his accomplice, and he had stolen the rocks to add a "unique" element to their relationship. But FBI investigators concluded that the girlfriend was a dupe and that Roberts had sold two of the rocks through a geology professor for thousands of dollars.

The FBI also discovered that Roberts had unsuccessfully tried to auction one of the rocks to a collector for $20,000. He was arrested and spent seven months in prison and forced to pay a $10,000 fine.

This story remains a fascinating mix of both the sublime and the ridiculous. At the heart of it, motives aside, it's a touching (if not slightly dangerous) display of the power of love. Still, it's hard not to imagine the awkwardness of the FBI agents when the culprit admitted his crime's motive was essentially a romantic gesture...sort of like, well, stealing a rock from the moon and then having it crash back to Earth with a loud thud.

Go!