The thief who broke into a display case at the luxurious St. Regis Hotel in Aspen and stole some very pricey hats has come forward and provided a reason for doing so.
Page Six reported on Wednesday that a man smashed the glass of the display case at the St. Regis and took two hats by designer Nick Fouquet. The hats were limited-edition and valued at around $2,000 each.
These hats were part of a display promoting The Snow Lodge, a club and eatery located at the St. Regis.
Security footage captured the heist, and photos of the perpetrator were later shared online. The photos show a man dressed in a black puffer jacket and jeans casually speaking on the phone while reaching into the case and taking the hats.
Fouquet, who is known for his custom, wide-brimmed hats, spoke out after the incident, saying that it felt “very Thomas Crown Affair,” referencing the 1999 romantic thriller starring Pierce Brosnan and Rene Russo.
“Minus the chic choreography,” he added.
The theft was taken very seriously by the hotel, and a police report was filed.
“This is Aspen, and crime of this nature never goes unresolved for more than a couple of days,” said Stephane De Baets, the owner of the St. Regis.
After likely seeing his photo shared online and knowing the theft was probably going to catch up to him eventually, the thief, who is from Australia but whose name has not yet been publicly released, came forward on his own.
He reportedly reached out to Jayma Cardoso, the owner of The Snow Lodge, to fess up to the crime.
The thief admitted that he had been drinking heavily at the hotel bar and claimed that he was so intoxicated that he didn’t know what he was doing when he stole the hats.
He offered to return one of the stolen hats, but confessed he had already given one of them away as a gift to a girl.