A 35-year-old Aurora man faces up to 10 years in prison after a Washington County jury convicted him Friday, Aug. 7, of stealing more than $50,000 in gold from the Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks & Minerals on NW Groveland Drive.
Vincent Charles Roberts II was found guilty of four counts: second-degree burglary, first-degree aggravated theft, first-degree theft and first-degree criminal mischief, according to the Washington County District Attorney's Office. Deputy District Attorney Christina Luedtke prosecuted the case before Judge Kathleen Proctor.
The crime dates to Dec. 24, 2023. Washington County Sheriff's Office deputies responded to a break-in alarm at the museum, a Smithsonian Affiliate off Highway 26, at about 2:20 a.m. and found a broken window and footprints leading south, KOIN reported. Surveillance footage showed the suspect fled with a bag of stolen gold in under four minutes.
Deputies deployed a K9 unit. Roberts escaped.
Prosecutors said Roberts used a sledgehammer to smash display cases and took nearly all the gold from the exhibit. The museum's gold collection included 107 pieces from the F. John Barlow collection, featuring items such as a 42-troy-ounce leaf of gold and specimens mined from the Ace of Diamonds mine in Liberty, Washington.
"It's like a piece of Oregon history that's just gone," Washington County Deputy David Huey told KOIN in December 2023, describing the scene deputies found that morning.
A trail of DNA and pawn shops
The investigation stretched across Washington, Clackamas and Marion counties and into Vancouver, Washington. Detectives learned Roberts traveled to Salem and Woodburn attempting to sell stolen items to pawn shops, according to the Hillsboro News Times. Shop owners recognized the gold from a sheriff's office media release and contacted law enforcement.
Investigators also found Roberts' DNA at the museum, which led detectives to focus on him as a suspect, The Oregonian reported. During unrelated encounters with law enforcement, Roberts was found with gold pieces belonging to the museum and materials used to melt gold.
A Washington County grand jury indicted Roberts in May 2024. The Clackamas County Sheriff's Office arrested him June 27, 2024. He pleaded not guilty in September 2024.
At the time of his arrest, investigators said many of the historical gold display items had not been recovered.
Roberts' most serious conviction, first-degree aggravated theft, is a Class B felony carrying up to 10 years in prison and fines as high as $250,000. The second-degree burglary conviction is a Class C felony with a maximum of five years and a $125,000 fine.
Sentencing is scheduled for Wednesday, Aug. 26, before Judge Proctor.
