On February 13, 1866, a Tuesday, a group of riders rode into Liberty, Missouri. Frank surrendered to the authorities later that year and was tried for two robberies, one in Missouri and one in Alabama. Who wouldnt be curious? In 1998, robbers struck the Bank of America at 1 World Trade Center in New York City, a feat believed to be impossible after the increase in security at the complex following the bombing in 1993. ", "I still acknowledge what I've done, but the process and experience of going to prison and finding myself (as well as a purpose in life) has really made it all worth it, relatively speaking. When Jesse read newspaper reports of robberies which were attributed to him he often wrote to the papers editor protesting his innocence of the crime in question. Online. May 6, 1925, Its an old up! 300 million yen robbery. It was she who labeled him as having a baby face and the sobriquet Baby Face Nelson was quickly bandied about in the press of the day when describing his crimes. Thom Hatch. In June 1986, bank officials opened for business on a Monday morning to find a 20-by-25-inch hole in the bottom of the vault, deposit boxes strewn all over the floor and about $172,000 in cash . Two members of his gang survived and James Oklahoma Jack Clark went on to join the Dillinger gang after being imprisoned, though Dillinger told Clark he couldnt join them unless he told him everything he knew about the Lamm Technique. They were never caught, and are believed to be behind similar heists in Paris during the following weeks. January 14, 1998, 3 Survivors of Geronimo Bank Robbery Testify at Neill Retrial. Nelson robbed his first bank in April 1930, another in October, and in Chicago that year robbed jewelry from the mayor of Chicagos wife. Unbeknownst to the three was that they were being monitored by security cameras, the film from which was broadcast that night on national television. Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker left a trail of dead lawmen and bystanders in their wake during their crime spree of robbery and murder. Arguably the third largest heist in history, a robbery masterminded by . ", "No. He obviously didn't realize the guy who had just walked out of the bank and past him had just robbed the bank. In 2005-2006, Clay Tumey "studied and perfected the art of bank robbery", never getting caught but still going to prison about five months after his last robbery because he turned himself in . A legend of the Wild West, in addition to robbing banks James was an expert train robber, because if you cant get your kicks robbing banks then try to steal from something that is moving! Kent, UK; 2006. Hamilton began his criminal career by robbing a gas station in Indiana, and being sentenced to a very long prison term of 25 years. No referenda as to which road to take. He was later transferred to the State Prison, where he worked out an escape plan with John Dillinger. Most historians agree she was completely smitten with him, and willingly joined him as his partner in crime. Because no bodies were ever found, the US Marshal service still considers the escape to be an open case. Library of Congress. United California bank robbery. John Dillinger spent nine years in prison for assault and battery committed while he was robbing a grocery store, and spent his time there being tutored in the art of bank robbery. Johnson was sentenced to four life sentences and Neill was again given the death penalty. This makes the act of tunneling into a bank, or other unlawful entry such as forcing the locks, technically a burglary rather than a robbery, but in the public imagination they are one and the same thing for the most part. Dillinger broke out, however, and Hamilton joined him once again to commit more robberies. I enjoyed everything about it so much that one or two weeks later Id be out looking for the next job. They then left the bank with about $7,000 in mostly small bills. She just shrugged -- palms up like a little kid -- and said, "That's all I got." For instance, he has robbed banks dressed as a maintenance man, a postman and a police officer. Top 10 Bank Robberies Who Successfully Made It - EnkiVillage Facebook boast Tesco robber jailed Hamilton was at the top of the public enemy list, whilst Dillinger and associate Harry Pierpoint were imprisoned. In August he robbed another, in Bluffton, Ohio. The Brink's-MAT robbery occurred on November 26th, 1983, when six robbers broke into the Brink's-MAT warehouse at Heathrow Airport, London. As they were mounting their horses, shots rang out, and a nineteen-year-old college student was killed, evidently by a stray bullet. The two were killed in an ambush in Louisiana on May 23, 1934, and the murderous Clyde Barrow and blithe Bonnie Parker remain romanticized in the twenty-first century. He would often flirt with female bank tellers whom he was robbing, and would also sometimes leap over the counter, a stunt he imitated from the movies. He died at the age of 52 of throat cancer, and his body was found dumped outside his mother . They were shot over 50 times, including numerous headshots on each corpse. James was not positively identified by any witnesses (though he was well known in the area), and none of the money was ever recovered. He moved to America shortly before the outbreak of World War I, and became a hold up man; quickly adapting his military training, his study of tactics and his precision and discipline to the art of crime. He was also an associate of John Dillinger, Alvin Karpis and the Barker gang. At 8.30 in the morning of January 14, 1998, the Brinks truck arrived and the guards were transferring the cash when they were overpowered by the gang assembled by Guarino. November 1968, Why family believes Alcatraz escapees survived their journey. The Great Depression began with the Wall Street crash in 1929, and lasted well into the following decades. He robbed a bank in Ohio, but was captured soon after. He was jailed for four years last April. Of course Chaz rarely made it to class; instead, organizing bank heists to steal more federal money. Hamilton attended the liberation at Lima Jail but did not enter the building, instead serving as a lookout. 1. Athan G. Theoharis, John Stuart Cox. In addition to being a master bank robber he was also a master of escaping from prison (which is good when your job is robbing banks on the outside). However, they would discover that the bank's vault had been looted. The story is unsupported by evidence and was probably created by Floyd, who hated the nickname Pretty Boy. Guarino acted on the information given him by an employee at the World Trade Center, who also gave him his security pass. Stolen: 53.1 million ($83 million) This brazen heist remains the largest cash robbery in British history and was executed with a more violent vision . One of the thieves, the one who had worn a ski mask, made it as far as Albuquerque, New Mexico before he was arrested two days following the robbery. Nelson was finally cornered and killed by FBI agents in November 1934, in a gun battle in which two FBI agents were also killed. It was the first known instance of an automobile being used as a getaway car following both an armed robbery and a bank robbery. 10 Most Famous Robberies in History - Discover Walks Blog I loved it. On September 19, 1900, members of the Wild Bunch entered the town of Winnemucca, Nevada. On April 23, 1934, the gang were confronted by police and, during a getaway, Hamilton was wounded and died shortly after. Photo: Stanislav Kozlovskiy / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0. Bank of Bangladesh Cyber Robbery ($81M) North Korean hackers attempted to steal $1B from the . On the way, Bowman stopped in Utah, Colorado, Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri. Nelson survived the confrontation only to die of his wounds at a safe house a short time later. On September 26, 1933, a total of 10 men, including . Their point of entry was a tunnel they dug from the sewers. Most bank robbers act solo or with groups of accomplices, but Bonnie and Clyde were the rare duo that went on a crime spree that included bank robberies as well as gas stations and retail outlets. It goes without saying that it takes balls to rob a bank, so I guess the term brass balls would apply to Henry Starr. It was not their first bank heist, but it was the first in which they used the threat of force. August 3, 2012, 3 Gunmen Rob Guards of $1.6 Million at World Trade Center Bank. While traveling and searching for new ways to put some money in his pocket for a better life, he stumbled upon Mike . The infamous Ohio State Penitentiary in Columbus was one of the nations most notorious prisons when Pierpont was sent there for execution. Jesse James fame was so widespread that many towns claim to have been robbed by him, despite little evidence of it being true. The murderers and thieves, Jay Wesley Neill, who did the killings, and Robert Grady Johnson, were arrested on December 17 in a San Francisco hotel, traced there by the trail of marked bills which had paid for their transit. People worth millions dont typically get involved in robbing banks (unless of course that is how you made your millions). News on all your favorite celebs, reality TV, and movies. The banks customers were shoved aside and gathered with the employees, all of them forced to lie on the floor while Barrow watched over them with the shotgun and Hamilton filled a sack with the cash from the drawers. 7. . These crimes labelled Van Meter 18th on the public enemies list. Baghdad holds the infamous record for the . A crowd gathers at Chicagos Biograph theater after the death of John Dillinger, July 22, 1934. After the death of John Dillinger, Floyd was elevated to Public Enemy Number One by the FBI. There are many perks to the gangster lifestyle; long life expectancy isnt one of them. The small explosion occurred in public outside the bank, causing witnesses to take notice of the man. 2. Early in the afternoon a man entered the bank, took the staff he found there into the back, forced them to lie on the floor, and then stabbed them to death. He received a life sentence but escaped during a prison transfer. On a Friday in 1976, Spaggiari led a team of 20 men into the bank vault. He was the last remaining public enemy, all the others having being captured or killed. Securitas Depot Robbery. . In 1879, Jesse returned to crime, with a new gang he engaged in a string of robberies in Missouri, Mississippi, and Louisiana, though Frank had by then given up the life of robberies and running. Barrow was armed with a sawed-off shotgun. The Great Northfield, Minnesota, Raid.