ABSTRACT
This summary of the conviction of Mr Whitehouse is the bare bones of a case that should provoke curators of any collections to assess their standards of security with regard to visitors who view reserve material. In a case that produced headlines varying from The fossils fanatic: collector is thief’ to the more sombre ‘Amateur geologist stole museum fossils’ there is perhaps an unusually comprehensive cross-section of museum officers who have been involved with the activities of one miscreant and can give their recollections concerning the modus operandi of a (now) known thief. As the recorder for the Geological Curators’ Group, I contacted those who had had dealings with Mr Whitehouse and the following is a summation of their views.
