Presidential Historian Charged with Trying to Steal Rare Documents

(NewsCore) - A presidential historian was held without bail Tuesday after being accused of stealing documents worth millions of dollars from the Maryland Historical Society, including some signed by President Abraham Lincoln.

Barry H. Landau, 63, is considered one of the foremost collectors of presidential memorabilia and artifacts.

Police say he and 24-year-old Jason Savedoff, both of New York City, attended a reviewing of historical papers at the museum Saturday where they attempted to steal a number of documents, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Savedoff was seen taking one of the documents and, after being confronted outside the building, police retrieved a locker key from him, investigators said.

Inside the locker, police found the documents -- which also included presidential inaugural ball invitations and programs, a commemoration of the Statue of Liberty and a commemoration of the Washington Monument -- inside a black laptop case.

Four of the recovered documents -- of which there were 60 -- have various values of between $100,000 and $500,000.

The pair was charged with theft of more than $100,000 and were ordered held by a judge in Baltimore on Monday.

The FBI is investigating the matter.

Source: The Baltimore Sun