Some folks switch jobs to find their dream career, but one FedEx worker seemed to dream of swapping delivery routes for treasure maps. Antwone Tate, a now-former employee of FedEx’s Memphis Hub, is alleged to have moonlighted as a modern-day pirate, rerouting packages filled with precious gems, shimmering gold bars, and vintage sports memorabilia directly into his own supposedly sticky fingers.
Tate’s alleged adventures began unraveling on May 27, when FedEx’s Loss Prevention unit got wind of some magically disappearing packages. You know, the kind meant to deliver smiles but somehow ended up being sources of frowny faces instead. A little detective work and a lot of eyebrow-raising later, authorities found themselves on a trail more glittery than a Broadway marquee, leading directly to a local pawn shop. Ah, but the plot thickens—or perhaps thins, given Tate’s less-than-sleuth-worthy oversight: he used his own driver’s license to pawn an $8,500 diamond ring and nearly $14,000 in gold bars. Spoiler alert—FedEx was not impressed.
However, if gold and diamonds aren’t enough to fit the bill of classic mischief, Tate allegedly didn’t stop there. Vintage baseball cards, the kind you usually see tucked away in protective casings on Antiques Roadshow, also went missing. Imagine, if you will, a 1915 Cracker Jack Chief Bender and a coveted 1933 Goudey Sport Kings card featuring none other than the legendary Ty Cobb disappearing in plain sight. Valued at approximately $6,800, these cardboard relics caught the eyes of keen collectors and unsuspecting eBay bidders. These items, too, were hot on the trail of Tate’s escapades and were miraculously found listed online. The seller’s username, antta_57, might as well have been a direct confession, because, to no one’s surprise, it led right back to Tate.
As the pieces of this criminal puzzle came together, the conclusion wasn’t just legally binding but also a polite societal reminder: theft, shockingly, is frowned upon. Following these escapades, FedEx put the proverbial stamp on Antwone’s departure, confirming that he’s no longer on their payroll and reinforcing that “finder’s keepers” isn’t included in their employee handbook or their ethics training video.
For now, while FedEx customers can breathe a sigh of relief that their parcels are more likely to find their rightful homes, there’s a cautionary tale here for anyone watching over their package tracking with bated breath. The postman may always ring twice, but one could never be too careful, should your treasures suddenly reroute to cyberspace.
Meanwhile, perhaps Tate is left contemplating the value of integrity over instant gratification, a vault of potential in ethical business models rather than its golden, glitter-coated counterpart. As for FedEx, they continue their round-the-clock missions, ensuring packages containing everything from everyday essentials to sparkling treasures reach the intended doorstep—and not a detour on a pawn shop’s shelf.
One would hope that if something seems a little off about your package delivery in the future, a cursory glance at eBay and a modicum of caution will suffice. And if you find yourself tempted by treasures unexpectedly appearing under suspicious seller aliases, recall this curious case and steer clear of any seller name that might just be a tad too revealing.
So, here’s to a world where postage flows uninterrupted, where packages arrive safely at their intended destinations, and where the only journey they take is from store to doorstep. And may those deliveries always come sans surprise heists or spur-of-the-moment career changes into amateur treasure hunting.
