Doris Payne: The Elegant Thief

Name: Doris Payne
Crime: Jewel Theft
DOB: 1930
Approximate Years of Operation: 1955-2005
Location: World Wide
Special Abilities: Charm, elegance and a sense of fashion
Where is she now? Serving time in Colorado from stealing jewelry for Nieman Marcus.


Doris Payne is a smooth criminal. More than any other known jewel thief, Payne got by on charm.

No gadgets, no ski masks, no weapons and no late nights. Payne, known for her sense of elegance, walked right into the priciest jewelry stores in the world and walked out the door with their most valuable pieces.

Payne is currently serving time for lifting a ring from a Las Vegas Nieman Marcus store, but she's no less feisty. Proudly, she has described to reporters how she cheated jewelers out of their goods.

Payne says the key was dressing the part and acting like she belonged. She says she would try on a ring, show it to the clerk and make sure they saw her take it off before she would slide it into a pocket as she tried on other rings. It sounds too simple to be true, but that's basically how Payne got away with the goods for half a century.

Eventually, the world caught up with Doris Payne. The Internet was the beginning of the end with jewelry stores spreading the word to look out for her. Of course, she wasn't hard to pick out. She was attractive, well-dressed charmer with mocha skin, and even at 78 she still exudes a sense of elegance.

Movie Moment: A teenage Doris Payne walks into a small Cleveland clothing and jewelry shop to pay a family bill. She chats up the owner while trying on watches before being shown the exit (watch still on her arm) as a white customer walks in. She gives the watch back, but the light bulb goes off. She can make people forget about the goods.