Woman accused of gold coin theft

Police in southern Utah have arrested a woman who showed up at a bank with a small fortune in rare gold coins, seeking to trade them for grocery money.

Washington City police arrested Emily Cammack, 24, after she returned to the same Zions Bank branch where she previously traded coins from the same collection and was recognized by an employee.

"She actually stole them from a family she was living with," Washington City Police Lt. Ed Kantor said Thursday. "She had befriended one of the family members over the Internet and moved here from out of state. They let her live with them at their home; she went through some property and discovered these coins."

Police said Cammack showed up at a Zions Bank in the St. George area on March 14 with the rare gold coins, seeking to exchange 14 of them for grocery money. She told the teller that Wal-Mart wouldn't accept the coins to buy groceries and sent her to the bank.

She left with about $280, but the coins are worth 50 times more than that. Because banks deal in face value, that's what she was given for the coins, Zions Bancorp. officials said. Authorities said the oldest of the $20 Double Eagle coins was minted in 1875 and the most recent was 1927. Depending on the condition of the coins, they can be valued at anywhere from hundreds of dollars to more than $1 million each.

Kantor said police began investigating just in case the coins were stolen.

"With a value like that, we wanted to make sure we didn't miss anything," he said.

Their case had gone nowhere until Cammack walked back into the same branch recently with the victim's daughter. A teller recognized her and called police.

The victim had no idea the coins were even missing until contacted by police when Cammack was arrested, Kantor said.

Cammack was booked into the Purgatory Jail on Wednesday on investigation of second-degree felony theft. She remains there in lieu of $10,000 bail.

Contributing: Lois M. Collins

E-MAIL: bwinslow@desnews.com