Did you take my entire LEGO collection? Because somebody did.
If it wasn’t you, can you help me find the thief?
A list of sets, some photos of the collection, and media coverage appear at the very end of this post.
Read the follow-up post, with details on a $2000 reward
Read the one-year-later epilogue
When did this happen?
Sometime after 12:00am ET on Aug 28 (when I got into bed) and 9:00am ET on Aug 28 (when I returned to my basement office) some person(s) invaded my home and relieved our basement of practically every piece of LEGO. And that’s it. Nothing else in our locked home, or unlocked garage, was touched. None of our expensive electronics (computers, monitors, microphones, etc.), none of my expensive camera equipment (body, lenses, lighting, etc.), none of my woodworking tools (table saw, mitre saw, drill press, router table, etc), or any other things of any kind.
It sure sounds like a prank. A very ill-conceived and poorly timed prank. That’s the explanation that makes the most sense of this situation. But nobody has stepped forward or returned anything.
[Minor addendum, after thinking more critically: most of the computer equipment, except for desk-mounted monitors and microphone, were on the main floor of the house with us; the camera equipment was hidden from sight; and the tools would have been very difficult to remove due to their size]
How did this happen?
I honestly can’t say. My family was home the entire day on Sunday, Aug 27. We had a few close friends over for lunch that day – people we’ve known for years and who depend on their credible reputation for their careers (and, before you ask, everybody is on the suspect list, including me). My boys and I played downstairs throughout the afternoon. The LEGO was fully present and accounted for throughout all of that. I was personally up and about the house until midnight, and then awake and out of bed again by 6:30am on Monday, Aug 28. Our house was locked when I went to bed, and again when I left for breakfast at 7am. My family was awake throughout the house from the time I left (7am) until 9am when I returned home and went downstairs. That means the break-in most likely occurred between 12:00am and 6:00am on Monday, Aug 28.
Someone came into my home. While we were sleeping. And removed nothing except thousands of dollars of LEGO. Small, rattly pieces of plastic. Either with a crew that should be large enough to be noticed, or with many trips up and down the stairs.
I want it all back, of course, but almost more than that I want to know how they did it. How did they get all of the drawers, parts, and sets out of our house without any of us hearing?
How much did they take?

We’re still working on the total volume, but I know it was generally in the realm of “a lot”. Enough to fill two 18Gal storage bins, at least. The good news is, I have a good idea of which pieces and which sets went missing.
You see, I spent some time last summer sorting my childhood LEGO collection and putting it into small-parts drawers (see above). I had quite a few misc sets and figures that I then put on display across the top of those drawers. I also happened to take copious amount of photos of the process and some of the cooler sets that are now (that is, were) in our collection.
Back when I was still a teenager, my mother had the bright idea to round up all of my LEGO instruction booklets and put them into a folder, which eventually expanded to fill a full box. And the thief just so happened to leave ALL of the manual in the box on the floor.

The real kicker, though, is that they took the sets that Katie and I were actively building! Rather large gifts that we had gotten each other recently. They took these partially-assembled sets and all of the pieces that I had just finished laying out and organizing into plastic dishes across a table in our basement.
Here’s what the table looked like yesterday:

And here’s what things look like now:


Those vile rats even took all of the tupperware and an ice tray that the pieces were sorted into! I mean, just look at all this tupperware!

How can someone help?
First, theft is covered under our home owner’s insurance policy, and we’re working through the proper channels to sort that out. We are actively working with the local police department on this active case.
Our collective hunch is that the sets are being sold off individually and the rest of the pieces sold in one or many bulk lots. The best way you can help is to keep your eyes peeled for used LEGO that’s up for sale. Maybe via Craigslist, maybe via Facebook, maybe via ebay, or pawn shops, or elsewhere. The seller is probably going to list them within a couple hundred miles of Grandville, MI (49418).
Which sets are missing?
We’re working on a list of that and I’ll update this post accordingly as more info becomes available. Until then, below is a short list of the assembled sets and loose minifigs that we know were taken.
- Most of the collection was sorted into nine Akro-mils drawer bins:
- 6 of the 24-drawer bins
- 2 of the 64-drawer bins
- 1 of the 48-drawer bins
- These sets were already assembled, or partially assembled:
- 71040 Disney Castle (Partially assembled at time of theft)
- 70810 Metalbeard’s Sea Cow (Partially assembled at time of theft)
- 75827 Firehouse Headquarters
- 21108 Ghostbusters Ecto-1
- 21305 Maze
- 21303 Wall-E
- 21103 The DeLorean time machine
- 8460 Pneumatic Crane Truck
- 10254 Winter Holiday Train
- 79003 An Unexpected Gathering (“bag end”)
- 10220 Volkswagen T1 Camper Van (“VW Bus”)
- 10242 Mini Cooper
- 21006 Architecture Series, White House
- 21029 Architecture Series, Buckingham Palace
- And here are some of the minifigs that were out on display (many of these are from either “LEGO Dimensions” characters or “Collectible Minifigs (CMFs)”:
- Benny, from The LEGO Movie (LEGO Dimensions)
- Wonder Woman (LEGO Dimensions)
- Stay Puft Marshmallow Man (LEGO Dimensions)
- Doc Brown (LEGO Dimensions)
- Marty McFly (LEGO Dimensions)
- Mr. T (LEGO Dimensions)
- Homer Simpson (LEGO Dimensions)
- Cleopatra (CMF, Series 5)
- Male Boxer (CMF, Series 5)
- Cave woman (CMF, Series 5)
- British Beefeater (CMF, Series 5)
- Lady Liberty (CMF, Series 6)
- Yeti (CMF, Series 11)
- Male Beach Lifeguard (CMF, Series 12)
- Shark man (CMF, Series 15)
- Faun (CMF, Series 15)
- Ice Queen (CMF, Series 16)
- Mariachi Man (CMF, Series 16)
- Emo kid (CMF, Series 16)
- Cyborg Woman (CMF, Series 16)
- Hiker (CMF, Series 16)
- Banana Man (CMF, Series 16)
- Corn on the Cob Man (CMF, Series 17)
- Male carhop (CMF, Series 17)
- Selma Bouvier (CMF, Simpsons Series)
- Stitch (CMF, Disney Series)
- Little Green Man (CMF, Disney Series)
- Alice (CMF, Disney Series)
- Mr. Incredible (CMF, Disney Series)
- Syndrome (CMF, Disney Series)
- Captain Hook (CMF, Disney Series)
- Minnie Mouse (CMF, Disney Series)
- Figures from misc sets:
Any leads?
Please either contact the Grandville Police directly via 616-538-6110 or GVPD@cityofgrandville.com or email me privately. My email address is my first name at this domain.
Thanks!
How about some more photos?
Sure thing, here’s a partial gallery documenting some of the sets and parts!
Media Coverage
So far this story has been covered by Inside the Magic, the Miami Herald, and Fox 17 news (WXMI) in Grand Rapids.
That’s crazy! I’m so sorry, Brian!
Who does that? I feel so sorry and sick for you! I hope you get it back!
I’m so sorry Brian and Katie. That is ridiculous.
Maaaan… Who does this?? Sorry to hear that man! That’s just absolutely terrible. I can’t imagine what sort of person would be interested in JUST Lego (and not your electronics). I’d like to think there’s some poor dad, struggling to make ends meet, wanting to make his young son’s birthday a memorable one and surprising him with more Lego than he knows what to do with. I hope you find out what happened and your collections are returned to you. Keep an eye out for the rare pieces like the Yoast minifig, that would be easy to track since anyone with one should rightfully have a reason to have one. Sorry again man!
I think Kurt Wagner, aka The Nightcrawler from the XMen did it. Had to be. But seriously, I can’t believe it happened. I’ll definitely keep an eye out on sales sights for it. I’m sorry that happened to you. 🙁
Bamf!
That genuinely sucks.
Praying for you guys. Hoping they catch the thief, or that it turns out to be some ill-conceived prank.
So sorry for you – that’s so bewildering and ridiculous and awful 🙁 I’m bummed that your collection was taken, but so glad your family is okay despite someone else being in the house that night.
Maybe this is obvious, but you didn’t mention BrickLink, and even more than eBay, that seems like the place these jerks would try to sell your bricks. As well run as the site is, I bet they could help keep an eye out for someone selling your combination of sets.
As a fellow collector my heart goes out to you. I’ve often worried about people stealing things from our home, but never my lego. But more I will. Yes it’s just a toy or collectible, but there is something special about those little bricks that separate them from other hobbies and collections. So much time and care is invested in the build and so much nostalgia exists around them because of both the properties they represent and the amount of time we played with them as kids. I know there are worse things in the world, but I feel your pain and hope you find them!
Thanks, Brent. The part that bothers me most isn’t that our collection was taken, since our insurance can help replace the pieces themselves. What really gets me is that someone came into my home, where my family was sleeping, and cleared out a wide-spread collection without a trace.
It’s crazy that they didn’t even touch anything else. And the fact that they targeted LEGO, specifically, just stings!
I’m a Drew and Mike (podcast) fan, listening from my new digs in Tallahassee, so I just wanted to say that I heard yesterday’s podcast and discussion with you (I hope you listened back to it). Entertaining as it all is/was, I was a Lego NUT as a kid, up until probably ~ 16 years old, so I feel your pain, brutha’, good luck and I hope you get it all back!
This is really terrible.
Have you been to a Lego store lately buying expensive sets…or any store for that matter where someone could have gotten your information?
Maybe some one saw you with the purchases and followed you home?
I hope you get it all back.
Nope. There are no LEGO stores near us, closest is probably a three-hour drive away. And our biggest purchases were very few and far between, usually from Amazon.
Funny I had upwards of $20,000 worth of Lego stolen back in July of this and there was no media coverage or anything like this and all of the sets taken were sealed. Most of them retired so I can understand their frustration.
Ooph. That’s even worse! I can take some solace knowing our thief won’t get nearly the value of our stollen collection because they’ll be forced to sell it off as bulk LEGO.
Greetings from NSW, Australia. Bummer about your gear, Man. Do hope you can solve this mystery.
Can we talk about suspects/suspicions yet? 😀
Brian – so sorry to hear about the theft. We are in the process of cleaning out our basement of my sons Lego Collection – he is off to college and no longer has time to build – and would be happy to donate this to you and your family. Please contact me so I can figure a way to get 1000’s of Legos to you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mno1Jt7dAFA
Vocês são rápidos demais haha tomara que ele recupere <3
Hey Brian! I heard your story at a YouTube Channel that I follow (https://youtu.be/Mno1Jt7dAFA).
I have two sets here that I am willing to give it to you. Please contact me so we can figure out how to do it.
Cheers from Brazil! All the best, Leonardo.
Sinto muito Brian pelo o que foi roubado, eu espero que vc recupere tudo, e que o ladrão ou os ladrões seja preso !
Sinceramente Anthony Wallace
then leon and nilce talked about the theft of lego i’m sorry