Man charged in connection to 'Wizard of Oz' ruby slipper heist dead, prosecutors say
A federal judge dismissed charges against one of two men accused of stealing the "Wizard of Oz" ruby red slippers in 2005 after prosecutors said he died.
Jerry Hal Saliterman was indicted in March 2024 on charges of theft of a major artwork and witness tampering. He was the second man charged in the crime, after Terry Jon Martin confessed to stealing the shoes from the museum in the actress' hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota.
Prosecutors filed a motion to dismiss the case against Saliterman, saying he passed away Sunday. He was 77.
U.S. District Chief Judge Patrick J. Schiltz of Minnesota granted the motion. Saliterman's lawyer John Brink confirmed the defendant's death but declined to comment further.
Saliterman allegedly threatened witness, concealed 'Wizard of Oz' slippers
According to the indictment, Saliterman was involved in the theft from its occurrence in August 2005 up until the FBI recovered the slippers in July 2018. Saliterman allegedly "received, concealed, and disposed of an object of cultural heritage worth at least $100,000," as stated by the indictment, including "an authentic pair of 'ruby slippers' worn by Judy Garland in the 1939 film 'The Wizard of Oz.'"
The indictment also claims that Saliterman intimidated a witness to prevent her from speaking with the FBI, allegedly threatening to "take her down with him" and "distribute sex tapes of her to her family."
How Terry Jon Martin stole Judy Garland's ruby red slippers in 2005
The slippers, one of four known pairs worn by Garland during the filming of "The Wizard of Oz," were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in Grand Rapids, Minnesota in August of 2005 when they went missing.
They were lifted in the middle of the night, police said at the time. Later, Martin's attorney released a memo describing the crime, saying Martin had discovered the shoes, which he believed to be adorned with real rubies, were on display close to where he lived.
Thinking they would secure a "handsome price" on the black market, Martin, who had never even seen "The Wizard of Oz" and who said he was unaware of their cultural significance, said he easily stole the slippers by breaking a hole in a window to the museum and then breaking the plexiglass the slippers were displayed behind.
The memo claimed that Martin only had the slippers for two days before realizing the attached gems were fake. He said he gave them to an associate for no pay, thinking them worthless, and apparently swore off crime after this.
Martin, now 77, was sentenced in January 2024 to one year of supervised release and $23,500 in restitution to the museum. His bad health contributed to his light sentence, his attorney said at the time.
Court records reveal little about Saliterman's role in the theft, but the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported he buried them in a plastic container in his yard for approximately seven years.
FBI gets the famous ruby red slippers back 13 years later
From there, investigators spent 13 years chasing down leads, theories and dead ends but the slippers remained evasive.
Finally, in 2018, a man contacted the company that had insured the slippers and said he had information on how the shoes could be returned. They were later recovered in an FBI sting operation.
The slippers were taken to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, where they were identified as the "traveling pair," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of North Dakota.
The slippers were sold for $32 million at a December 2024 auction.
This story has been updated with additional information.
Contributing: Cydney Henderson, Julia Gomez
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at Paste BN. Reach her at kcrowley@gannett.com. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.