Thieves make off with 7,000 Wii game consoles
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SEATAC, Wash. -- Thousands of Nintendo Wii consoles were stolen from a SeaTac distribution warehouse sometime this weekend and detectives are asking for your help to find the culprits.
Sometime between 9 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday, the thieves used forklifts to load up two 53-foot trailers and a box van with at least 64 pallets of the game consoles from Seattle Air Cargo, said Sgt. Cindi West with the King County Sheriff's Office.
Both trailers are 53 feet in length, white in color and have the name "McKinney" on the side, West said. The box van is a large International van with "Seattle Air Cargo" written on the doors.
The first trailer has a California license plate of 4HB3365 with a trailer number 533457. The second trailer has California license plate 4EA5521 with trailer number 531841. The Seattle Air Cargo van has Washington license plate B40622K
Detectives believe the thieves drove two tractor trucks to the warehouse and used forklifts inside to load up the trailers and box van with the pallets of Wii games. Overall, the value of the theft is over $2 million, including the stolen vehicles.
If you have information about this crime please call the King County Sheriff's Office at (206) 296-3311 or 911 if you see any of the vehicles.
Sometime between 9 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday, the thieves used forklifts to load up two 53-foot trailers and a box van with at least 64 pallets of the game consoles from Seattle Air Cargo, said Sgt. Cindi West with the King County Sheriff's Office.
Both trailers are 53 feet in length, white in color and have the name "McKinney" on the side, West said. The box van is a large International van with "Seattle Air Cargo" written on the doors.
The first trailer has a California license plate of 4HB3365 with a trailer number 533457. The second trailer has California license plate 4EA5521 with trailer number 531841. The Seattle Air Cargo van has Washington license plate B40622K
Detectives believe the thieves drove two tractor trucks to the warehouse and used forklifts inside to load up the trailers and box van with the pallets of Wii games. Overall, the value of the theft is over $2 million, including the stolen vehicles.
If you have information about this crime please call the King County Sheriff's Office at (206) 296-3311 or 911 if you see any of the vehicles.
Good luck selling them, or maybe good luck buying themas soon as they are hooked up the company will know it is a stolen item.
sounds like a mob job.
Sounds like an inside job.....I'd check the employees.
 @Kachina Exactly my thought. Only the employees would know that there were Wiis sitting around.Â
Look on ebay or craigslist. Thats where they will show up.
That is one....Wii-diculously large heist....sounds like an inside job.
The joke will be on the thieves once they realize that even with 7000 consoles they won't be able to find more than 5 games that are any good on the Wii.
 @JTesla There are linux variants that will run on them. Although everything I've read says the Wii U is slower than both Xbox360 & PS3 so reselling them would seem to be the only option.
But can they be hacked?
@lee986321 Yes the wii was one of the first game consules of that era to be hacked
 @lee986321 Nothing is fool proof. Back when ripping tracks from CD's became an issue, the brainiacs came up with a security system that they said would stop it. Didn't work. Some kid figured out that all you needed to defeat this security system on the CD's was a black marker pen.
 @lee986321 Probably. Just show it to a 10 - 15 year old kid, and they will have it hacked in no time flat.
and they can not be traced if they are not online.
This was not an ordinary theft, this was well planned.
All the focus on molesting passengers at the airport and anyone can walk into a warehouse at the airport. Just a little oversight by DHS & TSA.
 @axpman DHS/TSA doesn't get involved with the security of private companies, that comes under the jurisdiction of private security if someone wants to pay for it.  Besides, no alarms? Doors unlocked?  Keys left out loose? Â
Clever way to jack up the price with only six shopping days left...
Google: "Who has the cheapest price on CraigsList for 2013 model Wii consoles?"
I'm sure they'll find pieces of the trailers and maybe the chassis of the box van. Â The Wii's parted company with these conveyances very shortly after the thieves acquired them! Â These consoles were targeted, sure as Santa has little green elves . . . . uhmmm, oops! Â Afraid I mixed a few metaphors, there. Â Never mind . . . . . . .