The St Joseph Police Department is searching for a suspect after six historic gold coins disappeared from the Pony Express Museum Thursday afternoon.

Museum Executive director Cindy Daffron said a maintenance worker first notice the coins were missing from the Pony Express Era Coin display around 7 p.m. while cleaning up the museum located at 914 Penn St.

She said surveillance footage caught a man in the act taking the coins from the case.

“There’s a camera on it and so we have it on tape,” Daffron said. “Hope that he hasn’t melted down our wonderful coins, they’re gold.”

She said in 2008 the coins had an appraised value of around  $6,000.  The missing coins date back to the 1800s.

“They date back to 1860 or 1861 they are the most valuable ones,” Daffron said. “One of them was very rare and minted well, so somebody knew what they were taking.”

The missing coins had been kept locked in a glass case with more than a dozen other coins.

“Always with a lock you’re always thinking you’ve done the best that you know how to do and of course with technology today maybe we can put some senors in and improve with wireless and do something different but at least we had the camera on it,” Daffron said. “It’s sad because the children and the visitors are coming through and people enjoy looking at the exhibit.”

Police Department Captain Jeff Wilson said officers reviewed the surveillance video and determined the coins stolen between 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

The man on the footage is described by police as an older white male with gray hair, wearing blue jeans, a black shirt, a black ballcap with red writing and a gray jacket.

Wilson said anyone with information is asked to contact the TIPS Hotline at (816) 238-TIPS.