The FBI Agent Whose Philly Career was “Priceless”
Save the Date! The next monthly meeting of the Association of Philadelphia Tour Guides (APT) will be held on Wednesday, September 9 at 7 pm. The meeting will feature former FBI agent Robert K. (Bob) Wittman who will discuss how he helped solve thefts at the Rodin Museum, the Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, and more.
Bob joined the FBI as a Special Agent in 1988 and through specialized training in art, antiques, jewelry and gem identification, became the Bureau’s foremost investigative expert in art and cultural property crime and the founder of the FBI Art Crime Team. During Bob’s 20-year career, he recovered more than $300 million worth of stolen art and cultural property, resulting in the prosecution and conviction of numerous individuals across the globe. The Wall Street Journal called him “a living legend.” The Times of London dubbed him “the most famous art detective in
the world.”
Wittman will share his extraordinary career and the remarkable high-profile cases he helped solve here and abroad. Among the local crimes were a $100,000 art theft at Pennsbury Manor in Bucks County, and the attempted sale of North Carolina’s Bill of Rights to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. Who knew so much stealing was going on in Philly art circles?!
After 20 years with the FBI, Robert Wittman founded Robert Wittman Inc., a private security and recovery consulting firm drawing on his unique investigative experience to protect clients from losses related to theft, fraud, and forgery.
Bob is the author of Priceless: How I Went Undercover to Rescue the World’s Stolen Treasures, a New York Times bestseller in 2010. He will sign and sell copies of his book at the September 9 meeting.
The in-person meeting location is to be determined. Stay tuned. The meeting will also be livestreamed on Zoom. The Zoom link will be available in the APT Tour Talk newsletter the week of the meeting; non-members should contact Marianne Ruane president@phillyguides.org no later than 5 pm the day of the meeting to receive the link. A recording will be available on the APT YouTube page for a month following the talk.APT meetings are open to aspiring and working tour guides as well as anyone with an interest in Philadelphia-focused history. Attend one meeting for free and then it is $60 to join the association for the year or $10 per monthly meeting in-person event. Zoom meetings are free. Please join us for convivial company, good food, fascinating presentations, and lively discussions!