--- title: "Museum’s Porsche 911 Turbo Recovered After Thief Registered With Salvage VIN" description: "The thief that stole a rare 1977 Porsche 911 Turbo from the Sarasota Car Museum was arrested after an anonymous tip." date: "2023-08-10" modified: "2023-08-10" authors: - name: "Nico DeMattia" job_title: "Contributing Writer" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/nico-demattia" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/news/museums-porsche-911-turbo-recovered-after-thief-registered-with-salvage-vin" categories: - "News" - "News by Brand" - "Porsche News" --- # Museum’s Porsche 911 Turbo Recovered After Thief Registered With Salvage VIN ![]() *Sarasota Police Department* I'm no car theft expert but I have a feeling that registering a high-profile classic you just stole from a nearby museum is a bad idea. Fortunately for the folks at the Sarasota Car Museum, the person suspected of taking its rare 1977 3.0-liter [Porsche 911]() Turbo—36-year-old Daniel Boyce—wasn't so clever. Boyce registered the 911 using a VIN from a wrecked '76 911 just a week after allegedly stealing it, only to be arrested a month later. An alarm was tripped at the museum, which was [in the process of being forced out]() by a local state college, early in the morning on June 14. Police found signs of forced entry and some shuffled cars, as the thief seemingly moved some other cars around to get the 911 out. Since the museum kept the [Porsche]()'s keys in the driver-side footwell, the car was simply driven out. ![]() **Sarasota Police Department** Martin Godbey, owner and curator of the Sarasota Car Museum, told *The Drive* that this was the first time that a car was stolen from the museum in 70 years. According to *[CBS12]()*, a few days after Boyce allegedly stole the 911 Turbo, the museum received an anonymous call claiming to have seen Boyce with a brown 911 that matched the stolen car's description at a warehouse. The museum told the police, who then began investigating Boyce and found out that he registered a brown '76 911 under the LLC Triton Engineering on June 21. Police then traced the VIN Boyce used back to a 911 that had been crashed 23 years ago and sold to a California salvage yard, later arresting him on July 21. ![]() **Sarasota Police Department** Thankfully, the museum got its Porsche back in one piece. The 911 Turbo in question is said to be valued at around $250,000, which means Boyce faces felony charges of grand theft auto and scheming to defraud (over $50,000). He's being held without bond in Sarasota County Jail and detectives think there may be more victims in the case. *Got tips? Send 'em to tips@thedrive.com* ## Author Nico is a writer and reviewer from New Jersey who probably thinks he’s a lot funnier than he actually is. His love of cars began when he was just a kid playing Gran Turismo 3, grinding out enough race wins with a Mazda Miata to save up for an in-game RUF 911. That passion for small, lightweight sports cars drove his desire to learn more about the industry, get his hands on as many cars as he could, and bring those experiences to life on the page. He cut his teeth writing about BMWs, Volkswagens, and Audis, mostly, and has owned far too many of each. He’s on his fourth 3 Series sedan, but all of his old, cheap German cars have forced him to learn more about car maintenance than his mechanical capability can handle. Too many late nights have been spent scrambling to get a car running by morning so he could get to work. For some reason, he never seems to learn that old Bimmers probably aren’t the best daily drivers. But he loves more than just old German cars. He’ll gladly drive and discuss anything with four (or even three) wheels. Cars aren’t his only passions, though. Nico is also a big nerd and loves movies, video games, comic books, and cares far too much about the New York Giants. So don’t be surprised if you see football references or dumb, obscure movie quotes in any of his car reviews. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()