Investigation Into $50K Bug Heist Gets Tense in 'Bug Out' Exclusive Clip

The new IMDb TV true-crime documentary series Bug Out seeks to uncover the secrets of the daring 2018 heist of the Philadelphia Insectarium and Butterfly Pavilion when up to $50,000 worth of bugs and animals were stolen. In an exclusive clip shared with PopCulture.com, the documentary filmmakers confront the insectarium's owner. The four-part series debuts Friday on Amazon's free streaming service.

Bug Out tracks the Philadelphia law enforcement officers who tried to solve the insectarium heist, as well as the tension between the museum's original owner, Steve Kany, and the current CEO, John Cambridge. The series also delves into the illicit bug trade. In the days after the heist was pulled off, police said they believed it was an inside job, but the case remains unsolved. The robbery left the museum without 80% of its collection, including a venomous six-eyed sand spider.

In the exclusive clip, Cambridge is presented with statements from officials series director Ben Feldman uncovered from a Freedom of Information Act request. In one statement, a detective said that there were several inconsistencies in the stories he gathered from insectarium employees, leading him to believe it may have been an inside job. The detective also thought the value of what was stolen may have been overblown for insurance purposes. Cambridge disagreed with the detective's opinion. 

Feldman then brought up an affidavit that included an interview with an animal care person who said "everyone knew" the insectarium had a giant African land snail. Cambridge said this was false as well. "Either it's all of these people who aren't being truthful or it's you who's not being truthful," Feldman said. At that point, Cambridge said he wanted a break and left the room. "We don't have much left," Feldman said as Cambridge left.

"The headline of a $50,000 bug heist initially grabbed our attention, but once we started investigating this subculture of bug collectors and smugglers and realized the scale of this odd trade, we knew we had to tell this story," Feldman told the PhillyVoice. "There are so many great characters in the show, and interviewing each one added another piece of the puzzle until we were able to see the whole picture."

Bug Out was produced by The Cinemart, the studio behind The Pharmacist, Fyre Fraud, and LuLaRich. Executive producers are Jenner Furst, Julia Willoughby Nason, and Michael Gasparro.