Returning to Pennsylvania in February 1954 to stand trial, OKeefe was found guilty of burglary by the state court in McKean County on March 4, 1954. His case had gone to the highest court in the land. OKeefe wore crepe-soled shoes to muffle his footsteps; the others wore rubbers. As of 2004, it was During these approaches, Costaequipped with a flashlight for signaling the other men was stationed on the roof of a tenement building on Prince Street overlooking Brinks. From interviews with the five employees whom the criminals had confronted, it was learned that between five and seven robbers had entered the building. They were held in lieu of bail which, for each man, amounted to more then $100,000. Two weeks of comparative quiet in the gang members lives were shattered on June 5, 1954, when an attempt was made on OKeefes life. 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. The robbery. During their forays inside the building, members of the gang took the lock cylinders from five doors, including the one opening onto Prince Street. The month preceding January 17, 1950, witnessed approximately a half-dozen approaches to Brinks. 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. Two days after Christmas of 1955, FBI agents paid another visit to OKeefe. Thus, when he and Gusciora were taken into custody by state authorities during the latter part of January 1950, OKeefe got word to McGinnis to recover his car and the $200,000 that it contained. 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 names of Pino, McGinnis, Adolph Jazz Maffie, and Henry Baker were frequently mentioned in these rumors, and it was said that they had been with OKeefe on the Big Job.. Early in June 1956, however, an unexpected break developed. Gusciora also claimed to have been drinking that evening. He, too, had left his home shortly before 7:00 p.m. on the night of the robbery and met the Boston police officer soon thereafter. All efforts to identify the persons responsible for the theft and the persons who had cut up the truck were unsuccessful. In September 1949, Pinos efforts to evade deportation met with success. Burlap money bags recovered in a Boston junk yard from the robbery, Some of the recovered money from the robbery. The detainer involved OKeefes violation of probation in connection with a conviction in 1945 for carrying concealed weapons. 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. First, there was the money. After each interview, FBI agents worked feverishly into the night checking all parts of his story which were subject to verification. The FBI further learned that four revolvers had been taken by the gang. It was given to him in a suitcase that was transferred to his car from an automobile occupied by McGinnis and Banfield. 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. Brian Reader, 76, was jailed over the 26m Brink's-Mat armed robbery in 1983. 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. 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. While some gang members remained in the building to ensure that no one detected the operation, other members quickly obtained keys to fit the locks. Continuous investigation, however, had linked him with the gang. A Secret Service agent, who had been summoned by the Baltimore officers, arrived while the criminal was being questioned at the police headquarters, and after examining the money found in the bill changers possession, he certified that it was not counterfeit. There was Adolph Jazz Maffie, one of the hoodlums who allegedly was being pressured to contribute money for the legal battle of OKeefe and Gusciora against Pennsylvania authorities. Banfield was already dead. The wall partition described by the Boston criminal was located in Fat Johns office, and when the partition was removed, a picnic-type cooler was found. Immediately upon leaving, the gang loaded the loot into the truck that was parked on Prince Street near the door. Even if released, he thought, his days were numbered. Like Gusciora, OKeefe was known to have associated with Pino prior to the Brinks robbery. In the hours immediately following the robbery, the underworld began to feel the heat of the investigation. Many other types of information were received. All right, he told two FBI agents, what do you want to know?. Shortly after 6.40am, six armed robbers in balaclavas entered a warehouse at Heathrow airport belonging to security company Brinks-Mat. A few months prior to the robbery, OKeefe and Gusciora surreptitiously entered the premises of a protective alarm company in Boston and obtained a copy of the protective plans for the Brinks building. What happened in the Brinks-Matt robbery? 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. At 10:25 p.m. on October 5, 1956, the jury retired to weigh the evidence. When OKeefe admitted his part in the Brinks robbery to FBI agents in January 1956, he told of his high regard for Gusciora. O'Keefe later claimed that he had never seen his portion of the loot after he had given it to Maffie for safekeeping. THE brains behind the 26million Brinks-Mat bullion robbery has died penniless. 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. Among the early suspects was Anthony Pino, an alien who had been a principal suspect in numerous major robberies and burglaries in Massachusetts. While OKeefe and Gusciora lingered in jail in Pennsylvania, Pino encountered difficulties of his own. John had a smelter in his garden hut near Bath. Richardson had participated with Faherty in an armed robbery in February 1934. A lock () or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Two days before Maffies release, another strong suspect died of natural causes. The trial of these eight men began on the morning of August 6, 1956, before Judge Feliz Forte in the Suffolk County Courthouse in Boston. There had been three attempts on his life in June 1954, and his frustrated assassins undoubtedly were waiting for him to return to Boston. When the robbers decided that they needed a truck, it was resolved that a new one must be stolen because a used truck might have distinguishing marks and possibly would not be in perfect running condition. 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. 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 remained unsolved for nearly six years, until estranged group member Joseph O'Keefe testified only days before the statute of limitations would have expired. In December 1954, he indicated to the agents that Pino could look for rough treatment if he (OKeefe) again was released. The only physical evidence left at the crime scene was a cap and the tape and rope used to bind up the employees. On June 19, 1958, while out on appeal in connection with a five-year narcotics sentence, he was found shot to death in an automobile that had crashed into a truck in Boston.). On the night of January 18, 1950, OKeefe and Gusciora received $100,000 each from the robbery loot. 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. OKeefe was bitter about a number of matters. Another old gang that had specialized in hijacking bootlegged whiskey in the Boston area during Prohibition became the subject of inquiries. All efforts to identify the gang members through the chauffeurs hat, the rope, and the adhesive tape which had been left in Brinks proved unsuccessful. Henry Baker, another veteran criminal who was rumored to be kicking in to the Pennsylvania defense fund, had spent a number of years of his adult life in prison. After a couple of attempts he hired underworld hitman Elmer "Trigger" Burke to kill O'Keefe. At that time, Pino approached OKeefe and asked if he wanted to be in on the score. His close associate, Stanley Gusciora, had previously been recruited, and OKeefe agreed to take part. The gang members who remained at the house of Maffies parents soon dispersed to establish alibis for themselves. 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. The recovery of part of the loot was a severe blow to the gang members who still awaited trial in Boston. Police who arrived to investigate found a large amount of blood, a mans shattered wrist watch, and a .45 caliber pistol at the scene. On March 4, 1950, pieces of an identical truck were found at a dump in Stoughton, Massachusetts. They put the entire $200,000 in the trunk of OKeefes automobile. (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. Many of the details had previously been obtained during the intense six-year investigation. WebInvestigators didnt know if this money was related to the Brinks-Mat robbery, but Diamond led officers to investigate the British Virgin Islands, and one accountant in particular. This man subsequently identified locks from doors which the Brinks gang had entered as being similar to the locks which Pino had brought him. Sentenced to serve from five to seven years for this offense, he was released from prison in September 1941. Even after these convictions, OKeefe and Gusciora continued to seek their release. He was through with Pino, Baker, McGinnis, Maffie, and the other Brinks conspirators who had turned against him. During the trip from Roxbury, Pino distributed Navy-type peacoats and chauffeurs caps to the other seven men in the rear of the truck. At approximately 9:50 p.m., the details of this incident were furnished to the Baltimore Field Office of the FBI. At the time of his arrest, there also was a charge of armed robbery outstanding against him in Massachusetts. Baker fled and the brief meeting adjourned. Pino admitted having been in the area, claiming that he was looking for a parking place so that he could visit a relative in the hospital. The Brinks case was front page news. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Born in Italy in 1907, Pino was a young child when he entered the United States, but he never became a naturalized citizen. A number of them discontinued their operations; others indicated a strong desire that the robbers be identified and apprehended. Nonetheless, several members of the Brinks gang were visibly shaken and appeared to be abnormally worried during the latter part of May and early in June 1954. After these plans were reviewed and found to be unhelpful, OKeefe and Gusciora returned them in the same manner. During this operation, one of the employees had lost his glasses; they later could not be found on the Brinks premises. 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. WebThe Brinks Robbery The idea for the heist came from Joseph Big Joe McGinniss, but career criminal Anthony Fats Pino. McGinnis had been arrested at the site of a still in New Hampshire in February 1954. He was granted a full pardon by the acting governor of Massachusetts. An appeal was promptly noted, and he was released on $15,000 bond. 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. A federal search warrant was obtained, and the home was searched by agents on April 27, 1950. The FBIs analysis of the alibis offered by the suspects showed that the hour of 7:00 p.m. on January 17, 1950, was frequently mentioned. You get me released, and Ill solve the case in no time, these criminals would claim. The defense immediately filed motions which would delay or prevent the trial. Two other Baltimore police officers who were walking along the street nearby noted this maneuver. The FBI approached O'Keefe in the hospital and on January 6, 1956, he decided to talk. Each of these leads was checked out. The truck pieces were concealed in fiber bags when found. 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. Each man also was given a pistol and a Halloween-type mask. After completing its hearings on January 9, 1953, the grand jury retired to weigh the evidence. As a guard moved to intercept him, Burke started to run. During this visit, Gusciora got up from his bed, and, in full view of the clergyman, slipped to the floor, striking his head. By fixing this time as close as possible to the minute at which the robbery was to begin, the robbers would have alibis to cover their activities up to the final moment. Following their arrests, a former bondsman in Boston made frequent trips to Towanda in an unsuccessful effort to secure their release on bail. Through the interviews of persons in the vicinity of the Brinks offices on the evening of January 17, 1950, the FBI learned that a 1949 green Ford stake-body truck with a canvas top had been parked near the Prince Street door of Brinks at approximately the time of the robbery. 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. Since Brinks was located in a heavily populated tenement section, many hours were consumed in interviews to locate persons in the neighborhood who might possess information of possible value. He later was to be arrested as a member of the robbery gang. None of these materialized because the gang did not consider the conditions to be favorable. If Baker heard these rumors, he did not wait around very long to see whether they were true. Apparently in need of money he kidnapped Vincent Costa and demanded his part of the loot for ransom. 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 Brink's-Mat robbery is one of the most notorious crimes in British history. On November 16, 1959, the United States Supreme Court denied a request of the defense counsel for a writ of certiorari. Brinks customers were contacted for information regarding the packaging and shipping materials they used. The robbers carefully planned routine inside Brinks was interrupted only when the attendant in the adjoining Brinks garage sounded the buzzer. On the afternoon of July 9, he was visited by a clergyman. 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. They moved with a studied precision which suggested that the crime had been carefully planned and rehearsed in the preceding months. The casing operation was so thorough that the criminals could determine the type of activity taking place in the Brinks offices by observing the lights inside the building, and they knew the number of personnel on duty at various hours of the day. Both of these strong-arm suspects had been questioned by Boston authorities following the robbery. WebHe was the police intelligence officer who identified Noye as a suspect in the notorious Brink's-Mat 26m gold bullion robbery and began the surveillance operation from an old On October 11, 1950, Gusciora was sentenced to serve from five to 20 years in the Western Pennsylvania Penitentiary at Pittsburgh. Interviewed again on December 28, 1955, he talked somewhat more freely, and it was obvious that the agents were gradually winning his respect and confidence. Again, the FBIs investigation resulted merely in the elimination of more possible suspects. As the truck drove past the Brinks offices, the robbers noted that the lights were out on the Prince Street side of the building. OKeefe had no place to keep so large a sum of money. O'Keefe pleaded guilty January 18. 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. One of these officers quickly grabbed the criminals hand, and a large roll of money fell from it. Apparently, they had planned a leisurely trip with an abundance of extracurricular activities.. In December 1948, Brinks moved from Federal Street to 165 Prince Street in Boston. They were checked against serial numbers of bills known to have been included in the Brinks loot, and it was determined that the Boston criminal possessed part of the money that had been dragged away by the seven masked gunmen on January 17, 1950. Jazz Maffie was convicted of federal income tax evasion and began serving a nine-month sentence in the Federal Penitentiary at Danbury, Connecticut, in June 1954. Somehow the criminals had opened at least threeand possibly fourlocked doors to gain entrance to the second floor of Brinks, where the five employees were engaged in their nightly chore of checking and storing the money collected from Brinks customers that day. 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. The robbery received significant press coverage, and was eventually adapted into four movies. Before the robbery was committed, the participants had agreed that if anyone muffed, he would be taken care of. OKeefe felt that most of the gang members had muffed. Talking to the FBI was his way of taking care of them all. WebThe robbery occurred around 9:35 a.m. as the Brinks truck was parked in front of Pete's Fresh Market in the 1900-block of Sibley Blvd., Calumet City spokesperson Sean Howard There were recurring rumors that this hoodlum, Joseph Sylvester Banfield (pictured), had been right down there on the night of the crime. FBI.gov is an official site of the U.S. Department of Justice. [3] After five aborted runs, Costa finally gave the go-ahead on the night of January 17, 1950. 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. Eight of the gang's members received maximum sentences of life imprisonment. Their success in evading arrest ended abruptly on May 16, 1956, when FBI agents raided the apartment in which they were hiding in Dorchester, Massachusetts. The removal of the lock cylinder from the outside door involved the greatest risk of detection. The alibi, in fact, was almost too good. 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. [16] At 7:10 pm, they entered the building and tied up the five employees working in the vault area. Solicitor Michael Relton was jailed in 1987 for his part in the money The conviction for burglary in McKean County, Pennsylvania, still hung over his head, and legal fees remained to be paid. Before fleeing with the bags of loot, the seven armed men attempted to open a metal box containing the payroll of the General Electric Company. Adolph Maffie was convicted and sentenced to nine months for income tax evasion. Other information provided by OKeefe helped to fill the gaps which still existed. 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. All but Pino and Banfield stepped out and proceeded into the playground to await Costas signal. A detailed search for additional weapons was made at the Mystic River. With the death of Gusciora, only eight members of the Brinks gang remained to be tried. McGinnis, who had not been at the scene on the night of the robbery, received a life sentence on each of eight indictments that charged him with being an accessory before the fact in connection with the Brinks robbery. On January 13, 1956, the Suffolk County grand jury returned indictments against the 11 members of the Brinks gang. Geagan claimed that he spent the evening at home and did not learn of the Brinks robbery until the following day. Two of the participants in the Brinks robbery lived in the Stoughton area. After receiving the go ahead signal from Costa, the seven armed men walked to the Prince Street entrance of Brinks. Information received from this individual linked nine well-known hoodlums with the crime. A t the time, the Brinks-Mat vault was thought to be one of the most secure facilities in the world. Reports had been received alleging that he had held up several gamblers in the Boston area and had been involved in shakedowns of bookies. The officer verified the meeting. The thieves quickly bound the employees and began hauling away the loot. Each carried a pair of gloves. He advised that he and his associate shared office space with an individual known to him only as Fat John. According to the Boston hoodlum, on the night of June 1, 1956, Fat John asked him to rip a panel from a section of the wall in the office, and when the panel was removed, Fat John reached into the opening and removed the cover from a metal container. [15] Two vehicles were stolen: a truck, to carry away the loot from the robbery; and a car, which would be used to block any pursuit. All denied any knowledge of the alleged incident. Each of the five lock cylinders was taken on a separate occasion. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Questioned by Boston police on the day following the robbery, Baker claimed that he had eaten dinner with his family on the evening of January 17, 1950, and then left home at about 7:00 p.m. to walk around the neighborhood for about two hours. It was reported that on May 18, 1954, OKeefe and his racketeer associate took Vincent Costa to a hotel room and held him for several thousand dollars ransom. 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. From left, Sgt. All were guilty. He subsequently was convicted and executed.). In the back were Pino, OKeefe, Baker, Faherty, Maffie, Gusciora, Michael Vincent Geagan (pictured), and Thomas Francis Richardson. OKeefe was enraged that the pieces of the stolen Ford truck had been placed on the dump near his home, and he generally regretted having become associated at all with several members of the gang. Despite the arrests and indictments in January 1956, more than $2,775,000, including $1,218,211.29 in cash, was still missing. 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. Shortly before 7:30 p.m., they were surprised by five menheavily disguised, quiet as mice, wearing gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints and soft shoes to muffle noise. Before his trial in McKean County, he was released on $17,000 bond. On January 12, 1953, Pino was released on bail pending a deportation hearing. Many tips were received from anonymous persons. 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. During the period in which Pinos deportation troubles were mounting, OKeefe completed his sentence at Towanda, Pennsylvania. And the gang felt that the chances of his talking were negligible because he would be implicated in the Brinks robbery along with the others. All five employees had been forced at gunpoint to lie face down on the floor. A few weeks later, OKeefe retrieved his share of the loot. After weighing the arguments presented by the attorneys for the eight convicted criminals, the State Supreme Court turned down the appeals on July 1, 1959, in a 35-page decision written by the Chief Justice. Edward O'Grady, Officer Waverly Brown and Brink's guard Peter Paige were killed during the Oct. 20, 1981, robbery in Nanuet, New York. OKeefe immediately returned to Boston to await the results of the appeal. 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.. Thieves stole more than $1.2 million in cash and another $1.5 million in checks and. (Costa, who was at his lookout post, previously had arrived in a Ford sedan which the gang had stolen from behind the Boston Symphony Hall two days earlier.). Members of the Purple Gang of the 1930s found that there was renewed interest in their activities. Accordingly, another lock cylinder was installed until the original one was returned. During November and December 1949, the approach to the Brinks building and the flight over the getaway route were practiced to perfection. In a series of interviews during the succeeding days, OKeefe related the full story of the Brinks robbery. An official website of the United States government. Examination by the FBI Laboratory subsequently disclosed that the decomposition, discoloration, and matting together of the bills were due, at least in part, to the fact that all of the bills had been wet. Two hours later he was dead. 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 families of OKeefe and Gusciora resided in the vicinity of Stoughton, Massachusetts. 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 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. WebHere is what we know of those involved in the robbery. For other similarly-named robberies in 1981, 1983 and 2008, see, "Historical Photos: Boston's Great Brinks Robbery", "A quarter-century laterBrink's robber admits guilt to Globe", "O'Keefe Says Brink's Holdup Gang Vowed To Kill Any Member Who Periled Others", "Specs O'Keefe, Informant In Brink's Robbery, Dies", "Tony Pino, 67, Participated In '50 Boston Brinks Holdup", "Adolph (Jazz) Maffie; Last Survivor of Brink's Gang", "Six Arrests Break $1,218,211 Brink's Robbery", "Brink Robbery History Recalled After Decade", "$1,500,000 HOLDUP: 7 Masked Men Rob Brink's, Boston; Leave Another Million", "The False-Face Bandits: Greed Wrecked the Brink's Case Gang", "Gang of Nine Robs Brink's at Boston; $150,000 Reward Out", Historical Photos: Boston's Great Brinks Robbery. The Bureau was convinced that it had identified the actual robbers, but evidence and witnesses had to be found. 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. The roofs of buildings on Prince and Snow Hill Streets soon were alive with inconspicuous activity as the gang looked for the most advantageous sites from which to observe what transpired inside Brinks offices. Some of the bills were in pieces. Even in their jail cells, however, they showed no respect for law enforcement. Veteran criminals throughout the United States found their activities during mid-January the subject of official inquiry. A thorough investigation was made concerning his whereabouts on the evening of January 17, 1950. Several hundred dollars were found hidden in the house but could not be identified as part of the loot. It was used by the defense counsel in preparing a 294-page brief that was presented to the Massachusetts State Supreme Court. OKeefe claimed that he left his hotel room in Boston at approximately 7:00 p.m. on January 17, 1950. robert caro volume 5 release date,
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