who was involved in the brinks robbery

Adolph Maffie, who had been convicted of income tax violation in June 1954, was released from the Federal Corrections Institution at Danbury, Connecticut, on January 30, 1955. During the regular exercise period, Burke separated himself from the other prisoners and moved toward a heavy steel door leading to the solitary confinement section. On April 11, 1955, the Supreme Court ruled that Pinos conviction in 1948 for larceny (the sentence that was revoked and the case placed on file) had not attained such finality as to support an order of deportation. Thus, Pino could not be deported. Inside the building, the gang members carefully studied all available information concerning Brinks schedules and shipments. Approximately one and one-half hours later, Banfield returned with McGinnis. Even after these convictions, OKeefe and Gusciora continued to seek their release. During the preceding year, however, he had filed a petition for pardon in the hope of removing one of the criminal convictions from his record. Shakur's conviction includes planning the $1.6 million Brinks robbery in Rockland on Oct. 20, 1981. Then the lock cylinders were replaced. Faherty and Richardson fled to avoid apprehension and subsequently were placed on the list of the FBIs Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. As a cooperative measure, the information gathered by the FBI in the Brinks investigation was made available to the District Attorney of Suffolk County, Massachusetts. On March 4, 1950, pieces of an identical truck were found at a dump in Stoughton, Massachusetts. The Bureau was convinced that it had identified the actual robbers, but evidence and witnesses had to be found. As the truck sped away with nine members of the gangand Costa departed in the stolen Ford sedanthe Brinks employees worked themselves free and reported the crime. [17] Approximately a million dollars in silver and coins was left behind by the robbers, as they were not prepared to carry it. By Beth Rose. Shortly thereafterduring the first week of Novembera 1949 green Ford stake-body truck was reported missing by a car dealer in Boston. As the truck drove past the Brinks offices, the robbers noted that the lights were out on the Prince Street side of the building. On June 12, 1950, they were arrested at Towanda, Pennsylvania, and guns and clothing that were the loot from burglaries at Kane and Coudersport, Pennsylvania, were found in their possession. Interviews with him on June 3 and 4, 1956, disclosed that this 31-year-old hoodlum had a record of arrests and convictions dating back to his teens and that he had been conditionally released from a federal prison camp less than a year beforehaving served slightly more than two years of a three-year sentence for transporting a falsely made security interstate. Seven months later, however, he was again paroled. He claimed he had been drinking in various taverns from approximately 5:10 p.m. until 7:45 p.m. The robbery was first conceived in 1947; however, in 1948, after months of planning, the group learned that Brink's had moved to a new location. Solicitor Michael Relton was jailed in 1987 for his part in the money Before they left, however, approximately $380,000 was placed in a coal hamper and removed by Baker for security reasons. WebJudith Clark was paroled in 2019 after then Gov. The robbers killed Peter Paige at the Nanuet Mall in front of a bank. The truck that the robbers had used was found cut to pieces in Stoughton, Massachusetts, near O'Keefe's home. First, there was the money. Both OKeefe and Gusciora had been interviewed on several occasions concerning the Brinks robbery, but they had claimed complete ignorance. If Baker heard these rumors, he did not wait around very long to see whether they were true. Within two months of his return, another member of the gang suffered a legal setback. They had brought no tools with them, however, and they were unsuccessful. In the deportation fight that lasted more than two years, Pino won the final victory. The FBI approached O'Keefe in the hospital and on January 6, 1956, he decided to talk. All were paroled by 1971 except McGinnis, who died in prison. Again, he was determined to fight, using the argument that his conviction for the 1948 larceny offense was not a basis for deportation. WebAt 6.30 am on 26 November 1983, a South London gang of six armed robbers, headed by Brian Robinson and Mickey McAvoy, broke into the Brinks Mat warehouse at Heathrow Airport, expecting to make off with about 3 million in cash. In addition, although violent dissension had developed within the gang, there still was no indication that any of the men were ready to talk. Based on the available information, however, the FBI felt that OKeefes disgust was reaching the point where it was possible he would turn against his confederates. Sentenced to serve from five to seven years for this offense, he was released from prison in September 1941. Like Gusciora, OKeefe was known to have associated with Pino prior to the Brinks robbery. This chauffeurs cap was left at the scene of the crime of the centurythe 1950 robbery of a Brink's bank branch in Massachusetts. The following is a brief account of the data which OKeefe provided the special agents in January 1956: Although basically the brain child of Pino, the Brinks robbery was the product of the combined thought and criminal experience of men who had known each other for many years. Thieves stole more than $1.2 million in cash and another $1.5 million in checks and. In addition, McGinnis received other sentences of two years, two and one-half to three years, and eight to ten years. The results were negative. O'Keefe received four years and was released in 1960. Any doubts that the Brinks gang had that the FBI was on the right track in its investigation were allayed when the federal grand jury began hearings in Boston on November 25, 1952, concerning this crime. After these plans were reviewed and found to be unhelpful, OKeefe and Gusciora returned them in the same manner. (Burke was arrested by FBI agents at Folly Beach, South Carolina, on August 27, 1955, and he returned to New York to face murder charges which were outstanding against him there. All identifying marks placed on currency and securities by the customers were noted, and appropriate stops were placed at banking institutions across the nation. The only physical evidence left at the crime scene was a cap and the tape and rope used to bind up the employees. Of the eleven people involved in the robbery, eight would receive life sentences after a trial, with two others dying before they could be convicted. The Boston hoodlum told FBI agents in Baltimore that he accepted six of the packages of money from Fat John. The following day (June 2, 1956), he left Massachusetts with $4,750 of these bills and began passing them. Robinson died in a London Serious consideration originally had been given to robbing Brinks in 1947, when Brinks was located on Federal Street in Boston. Early in June 1956, however, an unexpected break developed. The door opened, and an armed masked man wearing a prison guard-type uniform commanded the guard, Back up, or Ill blow your brains out. Burke and the armed man disappeared through the door and fled in an automobile parked nearby. He was certain he would be considered a strong suspect and wanted to begin establishing an alibi immediately.) Andrew Cuomo commuted her 75-year-to-life sentence to time served and made her eligible for parole for the three slayings in the On the night of January 17, 1952exactly two years after the crime occurredthe FBIs Boston Office received an anonymous telephone call from an individual who claimed he was sending a letter identifying the Brinks robbers. As long as he was in prison, he could do no physical harm to his Boston criminal associates. Many tips were received from anonymous persons. Three years later, almost to the day, these ten men, together with another criminal, were to be indicted by a state grand jury in Boston for the Brinks robbery. This vehicle was traced through motor vehicle records to Pino. If local hoodlums were involved, it was difficult to believe that McGinnis could be as ignorant of the crime as he claimed. WebTwo of the prime suspects whose nerve and gun-handling experience suited them for the Brinks robbery were Joseph James OKeefe and Stanley Albert Gusciora. He needed money for his defense against the charges in McKean County, and it was obvious that he had developed a bitter attitude toward a number of his close underworld associates. Extensive efforts were made to detect pencil markings and other notations on the currency that the criminals thought might be traceable to Brinks. Pino was known in the underworld as an excellent case man, and it was said that the casing of the Brinks offices bore his trademark.. None of these materialized because the gang did not consider the conditions to be favorable. With the death of Gusciora, only eight members of the Brinks gang remained to be tried. Many of the details had previously been obtained during the intense six-year investigation. Even with the recovery of this money in Baltimore and Boston, more than $1,150,000 of currency taken in the Brinks robbery remained unaccounted for. Less than $60,000 of the more than $2.7 million stolen would ever be recovered. He was granted a full pardon by the acting governor of Massachusetts. The alibi, in fact, was almost too good. From this lookout post, Costa was in a position to determine better than the men below whether conditions inside the building were favorable to the robbers. other securities in the 1950 Brinks heist. This was a question which preyed heavily upon their minds. When questioned concerning his activities on the night of January 17, 1950, Richardson claimed that after unsuccessfully looking for work he had several drinks and then returned home. [14], Seven of the group went into the Brink's building: OKeefe, Gusciora, Baker, Maffie, Geagan, Faherty, and Richardson. WebSix armed men broke into the Brinks-Mat security depot near Londons Heathrow airport and inadvertently stumbled across gold bullion worth 26m. At the time of the Brinks robbery, Geagan was on parole, having been released from prison in July 1943, after serving eight years of a lengthy sentence for armed robbery and assault. Two other Baltimore police officers who were walking along the street nearby noted this maneuver. In September 1949, Pinos efforts to evade deportation met with success. (Geagan, who was on parole at the time, left the truck before it arrived at the home in Roxbury where the loot was unloaded. During this operation, one of the employees had lost his glasses; they later could not be found on the Brinks premises. The removal of the lock cylinder from the outside door involved the greatest risk of detection. Banfield had been a close associate of McGinnis for many years. This article is about the 1950 robbery. From Boston, the pressure quickly spread to other cities. Soon after OKeefes return in March 1954, Baker and his wife left Boston on a vacation.. Examination revealed the cause of his death to be a brain tumor and acute cerebral edema. (Investigation to substantiate this information resulted in the location of the proprietor of a key shop who recalled making keys for Pino on at least four or five evenings in the fall of 1949. He was released in 2000, after serving 16 years of his term. Brian The Colonel Robinson, 78, was cheated out of his share of the record haul. On June 17, 1954, the Boston police arrested Elmer Trigger Burke and charged him with possession of a machine gun. (Following pleas of guilty in November 1956, Fat John received a two-year sentence, and the other two men were sentenced to serve one years imprisonment. Pino would take the locks to the mans shop, and keys would be made for them. The hoodlum was taken to police headquarters where a search of his person disclosed he was carrying more than $1,000, including $860 in musty, worn bills. The robbers carefully planned routine inside Brinks was interrupted only when the attendant in the adjoining Brinks garage sounded the buzzer. The defense immediately filed motions which would delay or prevent the trial. McAvoy wanted members of the Arif crime family, specialists in armed robbery, on the job. He arrived in Baltimore on the morning of June 3 and was picked up by the Baltimore Police Department that evening. Born in Italy in 1907, Pino was a young child when he entered the United States, but he never became a naturalized citizen. None proved fruitful. While Maffie claimed that part of the money had been stolen from its hiding place and that the remainder had been spent in financing OKeefes legal defense in Pennsylvania, other gang members accused Maffie of blowing the money OKeefe had entrusted to his care. Even fearing the new bills might be linked with the crime, McGinnis suggested a process for aging the new money in a hurry.. Much of the money taken from the money changer appeared to have been stored a long time. Pino, Richardson, and Costa each took $20,000, and this was noted on a score sheet. All had been published in Boston between December 4, 1955, and February 21, 1956. Two weeks of comparative quiet in the gang members lives were shattered on June 5, 1954, when an attempt was made on OKeefes life. Soon the underworld rang with startling news concerning this pair. As of 2004, it was Of the hundreds of New England hoodlums contacted by FBI agents in the weeks immediately following the robbery, few were willing to be interviewed. Before the robbers could take him prisoner, the garage attendant walked away. Only $58,000 of the $2.7 million was recovered. After observing the movements of the guards, they decided that the robbery should take place just after 7 pm, as the vault would be open and fewer guards would be on duty. Three and one-half hours later, the verdict had been reached. Police who arrived to investigate found a large amount of blood, a mans shattered wrist watch, and a .45 caliber pistol at the scene. [16] Brink's, Inc. offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those involved in the robbery, with an additional 5% of recovered cash offered by the insurance company. At approximately 7:00 p.m. on January 17, 1950, members of the gang met in the Roxbury section of Boston and entered the rear of the Ford stake-body truck. The fiber bags used to conceal the pieces were identified as having been used as containers for beef bones shipped from South America to a gelatin manufacturing company in Massachusetts. For example, from a citizen in California came the suggestion that the loot might be concealed in the Atlantic Ocean near Boston. Apparently suspicious, OKeefe crouched low in the front seat of his car as the would-be assassins fired bullets that pierced the windshield. That same afternoon (following the admission that Fat John had produced the money and had described it as proceeds from the Brinks robbery), a search warrant was executed in Boston covering the Tremont Street offices occupied by the three men. Banfield, the driver, was alone in the front. WebBrian Robinson was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to 25 years in prison. Prior to his murder, Rumors from the underworld pointed suspicion at several criminal gangs. Five bullets which had missed their mark were found in a building nearby. I think a fellow just passed a counterfeit $10.00 bill on me, he told the officer. After being wounded on June 16, OKeefe disappeared. Another week passedand approximately 500 more citizens were consideredbefore the 14-member jury was assembled. On the afternoon of August 28, 1954, Trigger Burke escaped from the Suffolk County jail in Boston, where he was being held on the gun-possession charge arising from the June 16 shooting of OKeefe. Others fell apart as they were handled. The truck found at the dump had been reported stolen by a Ford dealer near Fenway Park in Boston on November 3, 1949. On January 10, 1953, following his appearance before the federal grand jury in connection with the Brinks case, Pino was taken into custody again as a deportable alien. He was paroled in the fall of 1944 and remained on parole through March 1954 when misfortune befell him. O'Keefe cooperated with writer Bob Considine on The Men Who Robbed Brink's, a 1961 "as told to" book about the robbery and its aftermath. At the outset, very few facts were available to the investigators. As the robbers sped from the scene, a Brinks employee telephoned the Boston Police Department. WebGordon John Parry, Brian Perry, Patrick Clark, Jean Savage and Anthony Black were all given between five and 10 years in prison for their part in the crime. As a protective measure, he was incarcerated in the Hampden County jail at Springfield, Massachusetts, rather than the Suffolk County jail in Boston. At the Prison Colony, Baker was serving two concurrent terms of four to ten years, imposed in 1944 for breaking and entering and larceny and for possession of burglar tools. At the time of Bakers release in 1949, Pino was on hand to drive him back to Boston. The Brinks case was front page news. [18] The total amount stolen was $1,218,211 in cash and $1,557,183 in checks and other securities. WebBoudin plead guilty to murder and robbery for her role as a passenger in the getaway U-Haul van, where the $1.6 million taken from the Brinks armored truck outside the In April 1950, the FBI received information indicating that part of the Brinks loot was hidden in the home of a relative of OKeefe in Boston. FBI agents tried to talk to O'Keefe and Gusciora in prison but the two professed ignorance of the Brink's robbery. The other keys in their possession enabled them to proceed to the second floor where they took the five Brinks employees by surprise. At the time of his arrest, there also was a charge of armed robbery outstanding against him in Massachusetts. What happened in the Brinks-Matt robbery? Well-meaning persons throughout the country began sending the FBI tips and theories which they hoped would assist in the investigation. Pino, Costa, Maffie, Geagan, Faherty, Richardson, and Baker received life sentences for robbery, two-year sentences for conspiracy to steal, and sentences of eight years to ten years for breaking and entering at night. You get me released, and Ill solve the case in no time, these criminals would claim. Occasionally, an offender who was facing a prison term would boast that he had hot information. In addition to mold, insect remains also were found on the loot. The criminal explained that he was in the contracting business in Boston and that in late March or early April 1956, he stumbled upon a plastic bag containing this money while he was working on the foundation of a house. During 1955, OKeefe carefully pondered his position. Adding to these problems was the constant pressure being exerted upon Pino by OKeefe from the county jail in Towanda, Pennsylvania. The Great Brink's Robbery, and the 70-year-old question: What happened to the money? It was used by the defense counsel in preparing a 294-page brief that was presented to the Massachusetts State Supreme Court. Then, there was the fact that so much dead wood was includedMcGinnis, Banfield, Costa, and Pino were not in the building when the robbery took place. Nothing suggests it was a stick-em-up robbery or strong-arm heist. In pursuing the underworld rumors concerning the principal suspects in the Brinks case, the FBI succeeded in identifying more probable members of the gang. Continuous investigation, however, had linked him with the gang. In its determination to overlook no possibility, the FBI contacted various resorts throughout the United States for information concerning persons known to possess unusually large sums of money following the robbery. As a government witness, he reluctantly would have testified against him. Underworld sources described him as fully capable of planning and executing the Brinks robbery. On September 8, 1950, OKeefe was sentenced to three years in the Bradford County jail at Towanda and fined $3,000 for violation of the Uniform Firearms Act. From the size of the loot and the number of men involved, it was logical that the gang might have used a truck. WebGordon John Parry, Brian Perry, Patrick Clark, and Jean Savage were all convicted at the Old Bailey. At approximately 9:50 p.m., the details of this incident were furnished to the Baltimore Field Office of the FBI. [14] They each wore a chauffeur cap, pea coat, rubber Halloween mask, and each had a .38 caliber revolver. Well-known Boston hoodlums were picked up and questioned by police. OKeefe and Gusciora had been close friends for many years. After nearly three years of investigation, the government hoped that witnesses or participants who had remained mute for so long a period of time might find their tongues before the grand jury. It was later claimed that most of O'Keefe's share went to his legal defense. Of the $4,822 found in the small-time criminals possession, FBI agents identified $4,635 as money taken by the Brinks robbers. The robbery. Shortly after 6.40am, six armed robbers in balaclavas entered a warehouse at Heathrow airport belonging to security company Brinks-Mat. Investigation established that this gun, together with another rusty revolver, had been found on February 4, 1950, by a group of boys who were playing on a sand bar at the edge of the Mystic River in Somerville. Other members of the group came under suspicion but there was not enough evidence for an indictment, so law enforcement kept pressure on the suspects. Six members of the gangBaker, Costa, Geagan, Maffie, McGinnis, and Pinowere arrested by FBI agents on January 12, 1956. [16] At 7:10 pm, they entered the building and tied up the five employees working in the vault area. Other information provided by OKeefe helped to fill the gaps which still existed. The loot was quickly unloaded, and Banfield sped away to hide the truck. On June 5 and June 7, the Suffolk County grand jury returned indictments against the three mencharging them with several state offenses involving their possessing money obtained in the Brinks robbery. Apparently, they had planned a leisurely trip with an abundance of extracurricular activities.. Charged with unlawful possession of liquor distillery equipment and violation of Internal Revenue laws, he had many headaches during the period in which OKeefe was giving so much trouble to the gang. Their plan was to enter the Brinks building and take a truck containing payrolls. The police officer said he had been talking to McGinnis first, and Pino arrived later to join them. They put the entire $200,000 in the trunk of OKeefes automobile. Since the robbery had taken place between approximately 7:10 and 7:27 p.m., it was quite probable that a gang, as well drilled as the Brinks robbers obviously were, would have arranged to rendezvous at a specific time. His records showed that he had worked on the offices early in April 1956 under instructions of Fat John. The loot could not have been hidden behind the wall panel prior to that time. Commonly regarded as a dominant figure in the Boston underworld, McGinnis previously had been convicted of robbery and narcotics violations. While the others stayed at the house to make a quick count of the loot, Pino and Faherty departed. Underworld rumors alleged that Maffie and Henry Baker were high on OKeefes list because they had beaten him out of a large amount of money. A man of modest means in Bayonne, New Jersey, was reported to be spending large sums of money in night clubs, buying new automobiles, and otherwise exhibiting newly found wealth. The most important of these, Specs OKeefe, carefully recited the details of the crime, clearly spelling out the role played by each of the eight defendants. Had any particles of evidence been found in the loot which might directly show that they had handled it? OKeefe had left his hotel at approximately 7:00 p.m. Pino and Baker separately decided to go out at 7:00 p.m. Costa started back to the motor terminal at about 7:00 p.m. Other principal suspects were not able to provide very convincing accounts of their activities that evening. All denied any knowledge of the alleged incident. The thieves quickly bound the employees and began hauling away the loot. A t the time, the Brinks-Mat vault was thought to be one of the most secure facilities in the world. WebWho Was Involved In The Brinks Robbery? Two members of the gang were quickly caught but the On August 30, he was taken into custody as a suspicious person. Brinks customers were contacted for information regarding the packaging and shipping materials they used. Two days before Maffies release, another strong suspect died of natural causes. Eight of the gang's members received maximum sentences of life imprisonment. Within minutes, theyd stolen more than $1.2 million in cash and another $1.5 million in checks and other securities, making it the largest robbery in the U.S. at the time. During his brief stay in Boston, he was observed to contact other members of the robbery gang. This man, subsequently identified as a small-time Boston underworld figure, was located and questioned. FBI.gov is an official site of the U.S. Department of Justice. The gang at that time included all of the participants in the January 17, 1950, robbery except Henry Baker. Pino paid a small ransom but then decided to try to kill O'Keefe. When the pieces of the 1949 green Ford stake-body truck were found at the dump in Stoughton on March 4, 1950, additional emphasis was placed on the investigations concerning them. Brian Reader, 76, was jailed over the 26m Brink's-Mat armed robbery in 1983. McGinnis previously had discussed sending a man to the United States Patent Office in Washington, D.C., to inspect the patents on the protective alarms used in the Brinks building. OKeefe claimed that he left his hotel room in Boston at approximately 7:00 p.m. on January 17, 1950. All right, he told two FBI agents, what do you want to know?. Burke traveled to Boston and shot O'Keefe, seriously wounding him but failed to kill him. As the loot was being placed in bags and stacked between the second and third doors leading to the Prince Street entrance, a buzzer sounded. WebOne of the robbers, Micky McAvoy, entrusted his share to associates Brian Perry and George Francis. The Both had served prison sentences, and both were well known to underworld figures on the East Coast. He was through with Pino, Baker, McGinnis, Maffie, and the other Brinks conspirators who had turned against him. WebNahome was a "financer" and associate of the Adams family, who were also suspected of having been involved in the laundering of the Brink's-Mat gold. A systematic check of current and past Brinks employees was undertaken; personnel of the three-story building housing the Brinks offices were questioned; inquiries were made concerning salesmen, messengers, and others who had called at Brinks and might know its physical layout as well as its operational procedures. Due to unsatisfactory conduct, drunkenness, refusal to seek employment, and association with known criminals, his parole was revoked, and he was returned to the Massachusetts State Prison. The robbers removed the adhesive tape from the mouth of one employee and learned that the buzzer signified that someone wanted to enter the vault area. There were recurring rumors that this hoodlum, Joseph Sylvester Banfield (pictured), had been right down there on the night of the crime. On January 12, 1953, Pino was released on bail pending a deportation hearing. THE Brink's-Mat robbery is one of the most notorious crimes in British history. Each man also was given a pistol and a Halloween-type mask. WebA Byte Out of HistoryThe Great Brinks Robbery. Pino also Several hundred dollars were found hidden in the house but could not be identified as part of the loot. Although Gusciora was acquitted of the charges against him in Towanda, he was removed to McKean County, Pennsylvania, to stand trial for burglary, larceny, and receiving stolen goods. A trial began on August 6, 1956. Investigation revealed that Geagan, a laborer, had not gone to work on January 17 or 18, 1950.). Despite the fact that substantial amounts of money were being spent by members of the robbery gang during 1954, in defending themselves against legal proceedings alone, the year ended without the location of any bills identifiable as part of the Brinks loot. Gusciora now had passed beyond the reach of all human authority, and OKeefe was all the more determined to see that justice would be done. The last false approach took place on January 16, 1950the night before the robbery. Another old gang that had specialized in hijacking bootlegged whiskey in the Boston area during Prohibition became the subject of inquiries. Even before Brinks, Incorporated, offered a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the persons responsible, the case had captured the imagination of millions of Americans. He claimed there was a large roll of bills in his hotel roomand that he had found that money, too. This occurred while he was in the state prison at Charlestown, Massachusetts, serving sentences for breaking and entering with intent to commit a felony and for having burglar tools in his possession. O'Keefe pleaded guilty January 18. Accordingly, another lock cylinder was installed until the original one was returned. Burlap money bags recovered in a Boston junk yard from the robbery, Some of the recovered money from the robbery. analyze the preferred leadership style of a mentor, ducktrap salmon expiration date, be friendly with your neighbors but not friends,

World Darts Commentators, Camping Airbnb Florida, Thomas Maneskin Zodiac Sign, Milton High School Basketball Alumni, Philadelphia City Employee Salary Database, Articles W