A Marietta man has pleaded guilty to stealing more than $100,000 worth of memorabilia, reports the local Santa Rosa Press Democrat, from a California collector who considered him a friend.
Carl Edward Cunningham, 45, admitted Monday to siphoning away about 120 items from Rancho Obi-Wan.
The museum in Petaluma, California, is considered the largest private collection of "Star Wars" memorabilia in the world with 400,000 pieces on display.
Cunningham faces up to four years in prison upon his sentencing scheduled for Sept. 7 in Sonoma County, the newspaper reports.
Cunningham’s attorney, Amy Chapman, had not responded to multiple requests for comment from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution by 5:45 p.m. Tuesday.
The museum's owner, Steve Sansweet, wrote in a June 5 blog post that Cunningham was a "good and trusted friend" and the staff is left devastated.
“Not only have important items been stolen from the collection, but also our time, energy and ability to trust unconditionally have taken a blow,” he wrote.
The scheme came to light when another collector found out he had bought a rare prototype rocket-firing Boba Fett action figure from a Texas warehouse that was stolen.
Collectors compared items purchased from Cunningham to to see which actually belonged back in Rancho Obi-Wan, Sansweet wrote.
The blog post also included a list of items that are still missing.
Cobb County court records show traffic violations for Cunningham dating back to 2001 with no felony or misdemeanor arrests.
About the Author
