Today in history march 2 what happened on this day 20250228 p5roj2.html – Breaking News & Latest Updates 2026
Advertisement
Advertisement
This was published 1 year ago

Today in History - March 2 | Hollywood icon's body stolen in macabre 'get-rich-quick' scheme

Nick Pearson
Nick Pearson

Powered by
1 / 3

Both men appear to have been rather sorry for their crime. Wardas said it was a get-rich-quick scheme, an attempt to fix his financial predicament.

"As a result I decided to hide Charlie Chaplin's body and solve my problems," he told Vevey District Court at the start of his trial.

Chaplin's son, Eugene, said both graverobbers wrote letters to his mother, who was ready to let bygones be bygones.

"The wife of the nicer one wrote and said 'We're so sorry'," he told The Independent.

"My mother wrote back and said: 'Look, all is forgiven'."

Wardas was given a four-and-a-half-year hard labour sentence for masterminding the grave robbery, while Ganev was given an 18-month suspended sentence.

Attribution: AP/AAP
2 / 3

The eighth and final assassination attempt of Queen Victoria took place in Windsor, England, on March 2, 1882.

Assassin Roderick Maclean sent the Queen some poetry, and was offended by the curt reply he received.

His shot missed, and the gun was snatched away by an Australian schoolboy.

Attribution: Public Domain
3 / 3

Gordon Chesney Wilson, a wealthy pastoralist's son from Horsham, was attending Eton when he intervened in the assassination.

In gratitude, the Queen promised Wilson (top row, fifth from left) a commission in the British army.

Wilson went on to serve in the Boer War and World War I, where he died in the First Battle of Ypres.

Attribution: Public Domain
email icon

Contact us

Share a tip-off, video or photo with us

View more galleries

Most viewed in World

More to explore