A vintage Barbie collection worth about $10,000 and other collectibles were reportedly stolen from a Denton woman's home Sunday evening, police say.
Officers were called out to the 600 block of North Wood Street Sunday before 6 p.m. The homeowner, Cristina Garza, reported to police she had been out of town for 12 days for her mother’s funeral.
“They went through the backyard,” Garza said. “They pried open the French doors,” to the back entrance of her home.
“They hit my bedroom, and that's where my Barbies were," Garza said. "The majority of my vintage Barbies."
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Garza had collected the Mattel dolls for decades. She loves the thrill of searching for dolls and learning about their history.
“Ruth Handler, Miss Handler had a daughter named Barbara,” Garza said. “So they called (the doll) Barbie. So that's why Barbie has her name.”
Handler is credited as the creator of Barbie.
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Yet on Sunday, when Garza came back home, she noticed many of her classic Barbie dolls were gone.
“They took about, close to 100, maybe 150 [dolls],” Garza said.
Most of the Barbies stolen, Garza said, are worth anywhere from $50 to $100.
“These dolls, the majority of them were dressed and some of the outfits are very expensive,” Garza said.
There is one collector’s doll, which Garza claims is worth thousands of dollars. It is one of the original dolls, wearing a traditional swimsuit with key features like pointed eyebrows, pearl earrings and open-toe shoes that premiered back in 1959.
“[She is] blond, as pale white as a ghost,” Garza said. “It was in a box, but it's not the real box. It's just a container box to preserve the doll. That's a $6,000 doll.”
Garza told police that autographed celebrity photos and horror masks were also stolen. According to preliminary information from Denton Police, “about 100 autographed photos valued at $3,000, and 10 horror masks valued at $100 each,” were stolen from Garza’s home.
Aside from the monetary value, there's sentimental value to Garza’s collection.
“It's like anything else,” Garza said. “People collect cars, vintage cars. And that's what I collect— the Barbie dolls.”
Garza fears the stolen items could be listed online, making recovering them even more difficult. Denton Police said no suspects have been identified at this time.
