Simon's Bodacious Engagement Ring Pales Next to Elizabeth Taylor's FBI Recovered Ring

Simon Cowell's Bodacious Engagement Ring: Really a Bauble

I'm sure Simon Cowell thinks his 6-carat engagement ring is something his bethrothed will remember forever and the public will ooh and awe over--and she likely will; and so will they. But let's hope that Mezhgan Hussainy doesn't meet with the same fate as the original owner of Elizabeth Taylor's 33-carat gem.

Simon bought his bauble in a store and will bestow it on Mezhgan, Elizabeth also received her diamond from a male admirer: her husband Richard Burton. But before he bought it, it belonged to another woman and she lost it through violence.

Vera Krupp and theKrupp Diamond: FBI Recovered Krupp Diamond in 1959

Vera Krupp, an actress and the ex-wife of a wealthy German industrialist, originally owned the Krupp diamond. But on the night of April 10, 1959, she lost it to the men who forced their way into her ranch home approximately 26 miles outside of Las Vegas.

Krupp and her foreman were dining together when the meal was interrupted by three men soliciting their services in putting blacktop on Krupp's long driveway. After forcing their way in the men stripped Krupp of her prized diamond, tied Krupp and her foremen up with lamp wires, and then proceeded to remove cash in the amount of $700,000, as well as a camera and a revolver from the home, according to the FBI.

This all occurred during the time when phones were battery-powered instead of operational via cell phone towers. So Krupp and her foreman had to actually drive as far as the Las Vegas airport to make a phone call to report the theft, since the ranch phone's battery was dead.

This allowed the criminals to escape the area before apprehension. But it wouldn't deter them from eventual capture. In keeping with his MO, John William Hagenson--a criminal who had perpetrated a similar crime in California--had just commited a similar crime again at the Krupp home, leaving an MO trail for the FBI to pick up unbeknownst to him.

Six weeks after the crime, one of Hagenson's partners in the crime--James Reves--was located. The diamond had been sewn into the lining of his coat left in his room. The other two smaller stones (baguette-shaped diamonds) that set on the sides of the big blue-white gem were located in St. Louis, where the feds had earlier found and arrested Hagenson.

And while all the men involved were later prosecuted and convicted of their crime, Hagenson was able to get off on appeal later, even though he was determined to be the mastermind of the entire job.

Vera Krupp and the Krupp Diamond Part Ways Again: This Time in Death

Even though the FBI recovered all three diamonds of Krupp's ring--and she was able to restore it to its former glory--she wasn't going to have long to enjoy it, as she passed away about eight years later.

Krupp's death resulted in the ring making its way to the auction block where Richard Burton procured it for his wife Elizabeth Taylor. Richard paid an amount considered astronomical in 1968: $305,000.

And considering that David Beckman only coughed up $65,000 for Victoria's 3-carat and Britany Spears' 4-carat was rumored to cost only $40,000; the amount Richard paid seems to still be mouth-dropping.

But other celebrities have paid even more for their diamonds: Simon just plunked down $750,000 for Mezhgan's 6-carat, Beyonce's 18-carat cost $5 mil, and Mariah Carey's 17-carat cost 2.5 million.

But Elizabeth Taylor continues to be the woman to beat when it comes to diamonds, as no one can boast a 33-carat treasured diamond like she can...and her man paid half what Simon did...and a lot less than Beyonce or Mariah's men.

Source
FBI.gov: The Case of the Disappearing Diamond