Two men stood before the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas, each declaring their innocence in a heist involving over $2 million worth of vintage baseball cards swiped from a Best Western hotel in Strongsville. The accused duo, Jacob Paxton, a 27-year-old hotel employee, and Jason Bowling, a 50-year-old man, both entered pleas of not guilty on the charges brought against them.
Paxton faces allegations of aggravated theft of an eye-popping $1.5 million or more, as well as tampering with evidence. His bond got pinned at $50,000 as his next court date looms on July 15. On the other side, Bowling, accused of receiving stolen property, saw his bond set at $100,000, awaiting the same court rendezvous.
The curious case unfurled when a FedEx courier mistakenly delivered a parcel containing a treasure trove of 54 vintage baseball cards, totaling an estimated value of $2,123,447, to the Strongsville hotel on April 17. Intended for Memory Lane Inc., a participant in a nearby sports card conference, the package vanished by the next day, setting off alarms and inquiries.
Prosecutor Michael O’Malley shared that a link was traced to Paxton, who had taken the package of baseball cards to Bowling’s Cleveland abode after intercepting it. The investigative breakthrough came on May 23 when authorities executed a search warrant at Bowling’s residence and managed to retrieve 52 out of the 54 stolen cards, leaving a pre-1909 Ramly Walter Johnson card and a 1941 Ted Williams card still at large.
The puzzle around the missing cards remains partially unsolved, offering an intriguing hunt for the final pieces of the caper. In a bid to close the case, anyone possessing information on the whereabouts of the elusive cards is urged to lend a hand to the Strongsville Police at 440.580.3247, citing report number #2024-000693.
