Man charged in $600k Bluey coin heist

Anyone who might know where 63,000 limited edition Bluey coins are being stored is urged to contact police after a Sydney man was charged with allegedly stealing $600,000 worth of the Australian currency.

Police will allege the 47-year-old man worked at the Wetherill Park warehouse where the $1 coins were being stored, and say he located and stole the packages from the back of a truck on June 23, 2024.

Police allege the man took 63,000 Bluey coins, which he then sold online for 10 times their face value.

Detectives from the State Crime Command’s Robbery and Serious Crime Squad under Strike Force Bandit executed a search warrant at Sefton, in Western Sydney, where they found and seized 189 unreleased Bluey coins, plus some electronic devices on July 31.

Commander of the State Crime Command’s Robbery and Serious Crime, Detective Superintendent Joe Doueihi, confirmed the coins were found at the home of a legitimate collector who had advertised the coins online after he had “innocently come into possession” of the stolen items.

Further investigations led to the arrest of a 47-year-old in Westmead on Wednesday morning.

The man was taken to Granville Police Station where he was charged with three counts of break and enter commit serious indictable offence.

Police will allege in court the man was aware the consignment contained the coins and had ensured they were moved to a unsecured location at the storage facility he worked at before they were stolen from the property.

He was refused bail and will appear before Parramatta Local Court on Wednesday.

Strike Force Bandit investigations will continue.

Superintendent Doueihi said police will allege the man had been working at the storage facility where the coins were being stored from June 22-24 before they were moved to Brisbane.

It wasn’t until July 3 that the coins were discovered missing at the Brisbane Depot and an investigation was launched.

Superintendent Doueihi said police were still searching for the remaining coins but believe some might already be in circulation.

“The coins were meant for general circulation, they were manufactured by the mint … however that was for early September this year,” he said.

“We are seeking information from anyone who may know where bulk quantities of these coins are.”

However, Superintendent Doueihi said if anyone is “lucky” enough to have one of the coins in their personal possession, they don’t need to surrender the coin to police as they’re legally tendered currency and can be used in general circulation.

Police also believe another two men might be able to assist with their inquiries and anyone who has any information should contact police.

Superintendent Doueihi said while he wasn’t aware of the Bluey phenomenon, he hoped the coins could be recovered.

“The theft of these coins have deprived a lot of young children and members of the community of having access to these coins,” he said.

“We are doing our absolute best to recover these coins and it was a ‘bingo’ moment when we came across the legitimate coins.”

In June this year, the Royal Australian Mint separately released three uncirculated Bluey coins featuring characters Bluey, The Heelers, and The Grannies.

The Dollarbucks coins paid homage to the iconic kid’s show created by Australian animator Joe Brumm, which rocketed to international success after it aired for the first time in October 2018.

At the time of the release, the highly-anticipated tender, which cost $20 for one coin, or $55 for a three-coin set, sold for nearly $900 on eBay.

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