Four Americans to Join 76 Other Amateur Private Eyes From Around the World To Solve BMW "Art Theft"

New York, NY - October 15, 2002. MINI USA today announced the names of the four Americans chosen to represent the U.S. in an international crime-solving adventure in Barcelona dubbed "MISSION MINI." The winners will be flown to Barcelona on November 6 to take part in the four-day, MINI-driving mystery.

The winners Brian Huerter from Riverside, CA, Winnie Poon from Milpitas, CA, Kendall Gelner from Lakewood, CO, and Brooks Garner from Boston, MA, were chosen from over 7,000 entries for their intelligence, creativity and, of course, their love for MINI - all of which was clear in their outstanding applications. The winners were sent letters of acceptance and the details of their mission this week.

MISSION MINI is a worldwide campaign that will bring 80 contestants from 17 countries to Barcelona to solve a mystery based on a short novel of the same name. The open-ended crime novel (by best-selling author Val McDermid) tells the story of valuable artwork that has been stolen from a Barcelona Gallery. Although the theft is a work of fiction, the art is actually real - commissioned from New York artist Peter Halley, renowned for his abstract geometric work.

A fictional private investigator named Sam Cooper then enlists the help of people from around the world to find the stolen art. That's where the four contestants come in. The teams will drive the roads and narrow alleys of the Spanish metropolis in MINI Cooper S' searching for clues to solve the "theft" of the valuable works of art.

To apply to win the free trip, contestants were asked to submit basic information about themselves (name, address, etc.) through the MINI web site, but were also asked to submit "extra credit" to illustrate their preparedness for Mission MINI as well as their physical and intellectual dexterity. Submissions ranged from 3-dimensional packages such as a home video delivered to MINI USA in a sombrero, to mock private-eye dossiers. The four winners all illustrated crime-solving intelligence and a sense of humor in their submissions.

Winnie Poon (codename: "MINI Clue-lage Secret Agent #2), a 29-year-old from Milpitas, CA, submitted a 10-minute film of a fictional superhero whose weapons included her MINI and a plastic disc gun that turned villains into bananas. Her film brilliantly lampooned the poorly produced voiceovers of the classic, Japanese monster movie films.

Brian Huerter (codename: "Whalen Rockford"), a 30-year-old lawyer from Riverside, CA, submitted a hilarious self-deprecating biographical short film. In the film, Brian convincingly describes his love for MINI and his intellectual strengths that would prepare him for MISSION MINI. However, he continually loses his focus and goes droning off on tangents where we find out about his love of tacos, or playing baseball with kids 20 years younger than himself. He also pokes fun at himself by having a friend shove him through an open driver side window, rather than skillfully jumping through as a spy would. His creativity and sense of humor helped him win a spot on the US MISSION MINI Team.

Brooks Garner (codename: "Van-Go"), a 23-year-old from Boston, MA, submitted the most artful and sophisticated film. The film opens with a MINI racing through the countryside and coming to a screeching halt in front of a dim-witted bullfighter that confuses the MINI for a bull. The driver shows his clever, problem-solving side by pulling out a small toy bull from the trunk and placing it in front of the bullfighter. This distracts the bullfighter and enables the MINI to drive away. The driver then pulls into a parking lot for a quick change of clothes in the back of the MINI, and then goes to an art museum where he sees a painting of the bullfighting episode that just played out in the film.

Kendall Gelner (codename: "Helm Apache"), a 32-year-old from Lakewood, CO submitted a dead-on spy dossier about himself as the perfect private investigator. It included details of his strengths in language, disguise, and crime solving. It also included creative artwork related to MINI and a CD-rom and video showing himself as a true international man of mystery.