Bank scams and kidnappings are almost a favorite topic of Hollywood blockbusters. And, indeed, in films, robbers get to build an ideal crime plan, get into the bank and take out a nehily amount of money.
But is it just that in ordinary life, where there are no cameras, director and operators !? We suggest you to learn a few absolutely crazy stories about the robbers who tried very hard to steal a couple of millions, but they got in trouble!
1. Robbery in North Hollywood
In 1997, in Hollywood, there was a bank robbery, which can not be called crazy. But the shootout that occurred after him, for a long time to remember the local residents. On that ill-fated day, 2 robbers were killed, 11 police officers were wounded and 7 witnesses of the crime were injured. Well, and as usual, especially in Hollywood - it was all filmed. That's how the scripts for future films are born.
2. The famous thief - Rip Thorne
One day, the famous actor Rip Thorne, known for the film "The Men in Black", decided to rob a bank in Connecticut. Rip's first mistake was that he robbed the bank right before closing and managed to somehow lock himself from the inside. And the second mistake is his glory. Agree, it is hard to commit a crime without witnesses, if you are known to the whole world !?
3. Cardboard robbery
In 2008, more than 30 armed policemen surrounded the bank PNC Bank. The waiting lasted several hours, and negotiations with the ghostly figure did not bring any result. Finally, the SWAT unit burst inside. What do you think they found there !? The usual cardboard figure. Most likely, the alarm went off automatically. Or maybe it was someone's cunning plan.
4. The genius of bank kidnappings
John Dellinger can not be called a loser in terms of bank robberies. Moreover, he is the greatest robber in history. John and his men pretended to be a film crew, who conducted a small survey of the area to shoot the film. And all would be nothing, if at these moments they did not commit real robbery.
5. Space robbery
In 2010, a man dressed in the suit of Darth Vader, tried to rob a bank. But his plans were not destined to come true, because no one took him seriously, and he constantly had to shout: "This is not a joke!". Apparently, he was hoping for a magical "Yes, there will be strength with you!" From the movie "Star Wars".
6. The robbery of Hibernia Bank
In 1974, Patty Hurst (granddaughter of a newspaper tycoon) was kidnapped from her apartment in Berkeley. The criminals succeeded in washing the girl's head so much that she agreed to participate in the robbery of banks, such as the large bank of Hibernia Bank. After that, she was pardoned by US President Bill Clinton.
7. Chinese robbery
The cunning plan of the robber was to steal a small amount of money, win a lotto, return the stolen goods, and leave the rest to himself. And this plan really worked for Reng Xiaofeng. Only there was a small problem. When the next time Rehn decided to repeat his plan, he was greedy and stole a large sum. But this time his plan worked. However, the loss, in the end, was discovered, and Ran was soon caught. Unfortunately, the cunning Ren and his friends were sentenced to death.
8. Eastern robbery
On January 20, 1976, a group of criminals from the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organization), using the chaos in Lebanon, blew up the side wall of one of the banks. They went inside the vault and came out with a nehily "catch".
9. Bank robbery in Colorado
In 1889 Butch Kessedi (robber) together with his friends decided to rob San Miguel Valley Bank in Telluride, Colorado. They managed to steal 20,000 dollars, which by today's standards are equated to $ 1 million.
10. Provident robbery
Saddam Hussein managed to commit, perhaps, the biggest robbery in the history of such crimes. He just took $ 1 billion to "protect them from the Americans." A good excuse!
11. The oldest robber
After Hunter Rowntree became bankrupt, his wife and stepson died. A series of personal tragedies pushed the 86-year-old man to a rather dangerous occupation - robbing banks. Unfortunately, he was too slow, so he was caught even before he started his robbery. Despite the fact that Rowntree was constantly trapped, every time after his release he returned to his occupation. In the end, Rowntree died in prison at the age of 92, as America's oldest robber.
12. A non-requested request
In 2009, a group of criminals broke into the house of a bank employee, took his family hostage and ordered him to return the next day from $ 10 million. Here's a hard day ...
13. Modern Robin Hood
The real name of this criminal is Tom Justice (literally "Justice"). The craziest thing about Tom's story is that robbing banks was his hobby. And we are serious! Most of the money Tom threw out, gave to the poor, and left only $ 2 as a souvenir. Moreover, he made all his robberies on a bicycle. True, his gratuitous desire to help the disadvantaged was dragged into the underworld, and he really began to rob banks. The police soon caught him and sent him to jail. But how well it all started!
14. The elusive old man
Gieser Bandit is not the oldest bank robber, but he is a real mystery that has not yet been caught. And, perhaps, now this dear grandfather is robbing some other bank in San Diego.
15. Liberated John
When it comes to marasmus, it's unlikely that anyone will surpass St. John. And that's why! Initially, Henry McElvan wanted to become a stand-up comedian, moved to California and changed his name to a fictitious pseudonym. Like most novice artists, Henry was forced to work to feed himself. And what did he choose? Became a pimp. It is strange that some of his "girls" began to rob banks. Soon, they convinced St. John's (Henry) to join them. Thus, he became the leader of the criminal group. But, unfortunately, the group did not differ in intelligence and ingenuity, so one day they robbed the same bank twice. No wonder the police caught them.
16. The Kat's family
Scott Cat dreamed of creating a gang to rob banks, but he did not have any acquaintances, so he offered it to his children. His eldest son agreed at once because of college payment. Later, his daughter also agreed to participate in their small business. To achieve their goal, they introduced themselves as workers who want to open an account with a bank. After the robbery, the police checked the records from the surveillance camera and drew attention to the too clean construction vests. They followed them to a local construction store, they found out the details of Scott's credit card and went to Kat's family.
17. Robbery without imprints
In 1978, Stanley Mark Rifkin stole $ 10 million without even touching them. Since Stanley worked as a computer consultant, he knew perfectly well how the money transactions between bank branches are carried out. Passwords changed daily, so sometimes they had to be written down. Simply put, Stanley stole a piece of paper with passwords, made a transfer and left the bank fabulously rich.
18. Bank trouble
In 2005, a group of scammers, pretending to be employees of a construction company, leased real estate near the central bank of Brazil. Why a construction company? Because no one would have suspected a huge amount of soil, which was taken out of the dug tunnel. As a result, only a few suspects were caught.
19. The blind robber
The strangest thing in this story is that the robber Toye was blind. He was waiting for some old man near the New York banks, he followed them to the cashier's desk (otherwise he simply could not find the way), took out a card that said: "Quickly, calmly! Or you are dead! ". Once, even the guard opened the door to him at the exit of the bank. Toye was caught, eventually, when the guards were not so kind.
20. The sharp soldier
After the service in Iraq, Walker's life changed and went downhill. He divorced, became addicted to drugs and decided to rob banks. Whatever it was, it helped Walker survive the post-traumatic syndrome. Like many burglars, he was not very worried about cash. Walker gave out some of the money, part of it was burned, and heroin was bought for the remainder. As a result, he was caught, diagnosed as "posttraumatic syndrome" and sent to compulsory treatment in prison.
21. Immigrant-cheater
The life of the Australian immigrant Hakki went downhill when he divorced and got carried away with gambling. As a result, he exchanged his taxi for a rifle and began to rob banks. He managed to make several successful robberies, but he could not masterfully hide from the crime scene. His plan was uncovered when he drove onto the drawbridge. The police scattered parts of the bridge, and Hakki fell down. In the ensuing skirmish, he was shot.
22. Wrong choice
Having served time in a torture camp in Algeria, Mesrin went to rob banks in France and Canada. When he was captured, he managed to escape, taking the hostage as a judge. And although in France Jacques Mesrin was famous, he spoiled his reputation after he mocked a reporter who wrote a negative article about him. As a result, Mesrin died during the shootout.
23. Thoughtful plan
From the building, which was considered "the safest in the world", the robbers managed to take out more than 70 million dollars. Most likely, two fraudsters pretended to be clients, and the third was a security guard who escorted them before the exit. The ideological leader, in the end, was killed in a shootout.
24. A hockey fan
Atilla escaped from communist Romania, grabbing the bottom of the train. Arriving in Hungary, he tried to get a job in the local hockey team. But he did not play well, and the coach took it only out of pity. Soon Atilla decided to rob banks to earn some money. His style was too recognizable. During the robberies, he gave flowers to all women. His antics, in the end, gave him away, and he was captured by the police.
25. Crazy crime
Anthony committed one of the most insane robberies on our list. He filed an advertisement on hiring workers who were supposed to stand on the street while he was robbing the bank. Then he managed to rob the bank, changing into the same uniform as the workers. When the police arrived at the crime scene, she saw a group of people dressed in one uniform. And purely thanks to the casual passerby, Anthony was seen and captured by the police.