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“You want the moon? Just say the word, and I’ll throw a lasso around it and pull it down.” That’s the famous line from It’s a Wonderful Life—a sweet romantic promise. But in real life, no one has ever come close to bringing down the moon. Well, almost no one.
In the late 1990s, Thad Roberts—a NASA co-op and aspiring astronaut—found himself at the center of one of the most audacious crimes in history. He managed to steal moon rocks, worth millions, right out of NASA’s labs. His reason? A mix of ambition, rebellion, and love.
This is the extraordinary, and borderline unbelievable, story of how Thad Roberts risked it all for a crime that would land him behind bars, all detailed in Sex on the Moon by Ben Mezrich.
Meet Thad Roberts: NASA’s Rising Star
Thad Roberts wasn’t your average NASA intern. Raised in a strict Mormon household, Thad was excommunicated from his church after confessing to having premarital sex with his high school girlfriend, Sonia. This incident fractured his relationship with his family and led him to reinvent himself completely.
Thad married Sonia, pursued an ambitious academic career at the University of Utah, and soon discovered his ultimate dream: becoming an astronaut.
Here’s where Thad began to overachieve:
- He triple-majored in physics, geology, and anthropology.
- He revived the university’s observatory and founded the Utah Astronomical Society.
- He learned Russian and Japanese—essential skills for an aspiring astronaut.
- He completed a charity bike ride, raising $10,000.
His efforts paid off. Thad earned a coveted spot in NASA’s Johnson Space Center Co-op program, a competitive internship that allowed him to work alongside real scientists and astronauts.
But beneath this overachieving exterior was a man desperate to prove his worth—a desperation that would soon lead him to make reckless decisions.
The Temptation: Moon Rocks Are Worth Billions
At NASA, Thad became enamored with the idea of space exploration and the legacy of the Apollo program. He learned that NASA still held 842 pounds of moon rocks collected during the Apollo missions. These rocks were divided into 110,000 individual samples for research.
Here’s the kicker:
- About 2% of these rocks were considered “junk”—deemed unusable for research.
- Even these “junk” rocks had street value in the billions.
At one point, Thad learned that a gram of moon rock could sell for $5 million on the black market. Doing some quick math, he realized that even NASA’s “junk” moon rocks were worth an estimated $40 billion.
For Thad, this knowledge was a game-changer. If the rocks were just sitting there, unused, why not capitalize on them?
The temptation was too great to resist.
The Plan: A Heist Fit for the Movies
Thad wasn’t alone in his moon rock ambitions. He recruited three partners:
- Rebecca: A fellow co-op and Thad’s new love interest (a whirlwind romance that replaced his marriage to Sonia).
- Sandra: A girl eager for new experiences, she befriends Thad after they go skinny dipping.
- Gordon: A student with a criminal past and a knack for finding buyers on the dark web.
Together, they devised an intricate plan broken into three phases:
Phase 1: Breaking In
Thad identified Dr. Everett Gibson’s lab as the target. Dr. Gibson, a respected NASA scientist, kept samples of meteorites and lunar materials in his lab, which was far less secure than the heavily fortified lunar vault.
To bypass security:
- Thad timed the cameras’ rotations to avoid detection.
- He used a clever powder trick to reveal the door’s keypad code—an almost Mission Impossible move.
- He planned a quick in-and-out operation to grab what he could.
Phase 2: The Getaway
Thad borrowed a NASA-approved car from a friend (without explaining his plans) and swapped the license plates at a strip mall.
He and Rebecca booked a hotel room, which they transformed into a makeshift lab. They brought tools, tarps, and notebooks to catalog the stolen samples.
Phase 3: The Sale
Gordon reached out to buyers under an alias—Orb Robinson—through online mineral clubs. A collector in Belgium named Axel Emmerman expressed interest.
But Axel was no fool. He recognized the illegal nature of moon rocks and immediately forwarded the emails to the FBI.
The Heist: Breaking Into NASA
On a rainy evening, Thad, Rebecca, and Gordon put their plan into action. With Rebecca acting as his accomplice, Thad entered Dr. Gibson’s lab using the code he’d cracked earlier.
The safe inside was heavier than expected—600 pounds—and Thad couldn’t open it on the spot. Instead, he and Rebecca wheeled the entire safe out of the lab and into their getaway car.
At the hotel, the safe turned out to be surprisingly easy to open. Inside, they found:
- Priceless lunar samples collected by Neil Armstrong.
- Rare meteorite fragments believed to have come from Mars.
The stolen rocks had an estimated value of half a billion dollars.
And then, in one of the most bizarre moments of the story, Thad placed a few grams of moon rock under the bedsheets and made love to Rebecca—giving the story its now-infamous title: Sex on the Moon.
The Downfall: Busted by the FBI
The sale was set to take place in Florida. Axel, working with the FBI, had set up a sting operation. Thad, Rebecca, and Gordon were unaware they were walking straight into a trap.
During a restaurant meeting with Axel’s “sister” (an undercover FBI agent), Thad nervously overshared. He boasted about his plans, revealed his accomplices, and acted far too relaxed for someone orchestrating a multi-million-dollar illegal sale.
As they left the restaurant to finalize the deal, the FBI swarmed in:
- Guns drawn.
- Thad pulled out of the car and slammed to the ground.
- Rebecca and Gordon arrested alongside him.
In that moment, Thad knew his dream was over.
The Sentence: Harsh Justice
Despite the seemingly victimless crime, Thad faced severe consequences. The court applied a 5K2.7 sentencing enhancement, usually reserved for terrorism cases, because the theft disrupted a branch of the U.S. government (NASA).
- Thad was sentenced to 8.3 years in prison.
- Dr. Everett Gibson’s emotional testimony about losing priceless scientific work sealed the deal.
Why Does This Story Fascinate Us?
Thad Roberts’ moon rock heist is more than just a crime—it’s a story of ambition, desperation, and the human need to leave a legacy. Thad wasn’t a hardened criminal; he was a brilliant, idealistic young man who went too far in his quest to prove himself.
His story raises fascinating questions:
- What drives us to take such extreme risks?
- Can someone’s ambition blind them to the consequences of their actions?
- Is it possible to justify a crime when the stolen items are considered “junk”?
Want the Full Story?
This blog post only scratches the surface of Thad Roberts’ incredible tale. For the full story—including the fallout, Thad’s prison experience, and his post-prison life—grab a copy of Sex on the Moon by Ben Mezrich.
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Until next time, stay curious, dream big, and maybe leave the moon rocks alone. ????
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