The Wizard of Oz Ruby Slippers Theft Case, Second Suspect Indicted With New Updates to Case
Jerry Hal Saliterman, 76, of Crystal, Minnesota, faces indictment concerning the 2005 theft of Judy Garland’s ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz.
The charges accuse him of theft of a major artwork and witness tampering. Saliterman appeared in U.S. District Court in St. Paul but abstained from entering a plea during his first appearance.
The thief stole the ruby slippers, adorned with sequins and glass beads, from the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, nearly 20 years ago. The FBI recovered them in 2018, ending their mysterious disappearance.
There’s No Place Like Home! #FBI Minneapolis and Grand Rapids Police Department Return the Ruby Slippers to the Rightful Ownerhttps://t.co/2lqsO7gg0Q pic.twitter.com/jBJbBHHcK8
— FBI Minneapolis (@FBIMinneapolis) March 18, 2024
According to the indictment, from August 2005 to July 2018, Saliterman received, concealed, and disposed of the stolen ruby slippers Garland wore in The Wizard of Oz. It alleges that Saliterman knew they were stolen and threatened to release compromising material involving a woman if she spoke about the slippers. During his court appearance, Saliterman, in a wheelchair and on supplemental oxygen, responded affirmatively when asked if he understood the charges but remained silent about the allegations.
Initially, the court did not openly discuss the theft of the ruby slippers. The indictment was ordered to be unsealed on Friday but wasn’t made publicly available until Sunday. After Friday’s hearing, Saliterman’s attorney, John Brink, stated that Saliterman asserts his innocence.
The slipper thief, Terry Jon Martin, aged 76, pleaded guilty in October to theft of a major artwork. He admitted using a hammer to smash the museum’s door and display case. Martin’s attorney described it as an attempt to pull off “one last score” after turning away from a life of crime. Due to his poor health, Martin was sentenced to time served in January.
A second man has been charged in connection with the 2005 theft of a pair of ruby slippers that Judy Garland wore in “The Wizard of Oz”. Prosecutors are seeking the drop a house on him penalty.
— Rocky Mountain Mike (@RockyMntnMike) March 18, 2024
Martin’s lawyer states in court documents that an old associate of Martin, allegedly connected to the mob, informed him that the ruby slippers needed to be adorned with real jewels. This to justify their $1 million insured value.
During an October hearing, Martin, residing near Grand Rapids, mentioned that he had hoped to remove what he believed were genuine rubies from the shoes for sale. However, he later discovered that the rubies were not real. Consequently, Martin disposed of the slippers.
Defense attorney Dane DeKrey stated in court documents that Martin’s former associate convinced him to steal the ruby slippers. This despite Martin seemingly having moved on from a criminal past nearly a decade earlier. DeKrey noted that the prospect of a final big heist haunted Martin, showing that old habits lingered. According to DeKrey’s memo, Martin was unaware of the cultural significance of the ruby slippers and had never seen The Wizard of Oz.
The unsealed documents don’t reveal any connection between Martin and Saliterman. In the iconic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, Garland’s character Dorothy has to click her ruby slippers three times, repeating “There’s no place like home,” to return from Oz to Kansas. Only four authentic pairs of slippers are known to exist.
The FBI never disclosed how they tracked down the stolen slippers, which were recovered during a sting in Minneapolis in 2018. Federal prosecutors estimate their market value at about $3.5 million. Hollywood memorabilia collector Michael Shaw had loaned the stolen pair to the museum before the theft and various institutions and collectors hold the other pairs.
Frances Gumm, later known as Judy Garland, was born in 1922 and lived in Grand Rapids until the age of 4, before her family moved to Los Angeles. The Judy Garland Museum claims to have the world’s largest collection of Garland and the Wizard of Oz memorabilia. She passed away in 1969.
