Is There Such Thing as a Moral or Ethical Heist?

I’m currently reading “Everyone in This Bank Is a Thief” by Benjamin Stevenson. I love heist fiction (movies, books, TV shows), and I’ve now played enough heist-themed board games that I’ve recorded a top 10 list. It’s a theme I’d like to explore in a game someday.

However, there’s one big thing that bothers me as I consider a design in this genre: I consider stealing to be morally wrong. How could I make a game that, at its core, asks players to take something that isn’t theirs?

Heist movies often work around this issue by making you really like the protagonists, most of whom have often been wronged by the person they’re stealing from (often a very unlikable character). Ocean’s Eleven and The Fantastic Mr Fox do this well. Yet in real life I don’t consider those ends to justify the means.

Another approach taken by some heist fiction is to steal something that no one will miss. Inception, The Thomas Crown Afair, and Your Friends and Neighbors lean into this concept. Again, though, just because you don’t notice a precious object is missing doesn’t permit me to take it.

What about nebulous ownership? Inside Man does this with Nazi treasure held by a bank in the modern day. Though technically, shouldn’t it be returned to the families of the original owners (if possible)?

Then there’s the Indiana Jones approach of stealing something to put it in its rightful place (and to prevent someone else from stealing it instead).

Even Robin Hood is positioned as a good guy, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, but does disliking the target and not keeping the stolen goods make the heist ethical or moral?

The list goes on. But perhaps there are exceptions. I’m truly not condoning stealing in any way, but is there such thing as a moral or ethical heist? What could a fictional character steal that would be morally and ethically right?