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On the night of January 18, 1950, OKeefe and Gusciora received $100,000 each from the robbery loot. During his brief stay in Boston, he was observed to contact other members of the robbery gang. Stanley Gusciora (pictured left), who had been transferred to Massachusetts from Pennsylvania to stand trial, was placed under medical care due to weakness, dizziness, and vomiting. Six armed men stole diamonds, cash and three tonnes of gold bullion from a warehouse close to . Underworld sources described him as fully capable of planning and executing the Brinks robbery. What Happened To The Brinks Mat Robbery? An official website of the United States government. On November 26, 1983, six armed robbers broke into the Brink-Mat security depot near Heathrow Airport in hopes of stealing 3.2 million in cash. Baker fled and the brief meeting adjourned. In the years following a shared event, like an assassination, everyone remembers where they were when it happened. A passerby might notice that it was missing. "A search warrant was executed in Boston covering the Tremont Street offices occupied by the three men" (FBI). One of these officers quickly grabbed the criminals hand, and a large roll of money fell from it. Born in Italy in 1907, Pino was a young child when he entered the United States, but he never became a naturalized citizen. Two died before they were tried. During this operation, a pair of glasses belonging to one of the employees was unconsciously scooped up with other items and stuffed into a bag of loot. They did not expect to. On August 30, he was taken into custody as a suspicious person. The Brinks case was front page news. When this case was continued until April 1, 1954, OKeefe was released on $1,500 bond. He claimed there was a large roll of bills in his hotel roomand that he had found that money, too. 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. Micky McAvoy, who masterminded the 1983 robbery of 26million from Brinks-Mat's Heathrow depot, has died aged 70 and never got his hands on the money stolen in the mega-heist Except for $5,000 that he took before placing the loot in Maffies care, OKeefe angrily stated, he was never to see his share of the Brinks money again. Gusciora also claimed to have been drinking that evening. 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. All of them wore Navy-type peacoats, gloves, and chauffeurs caps. Both had served prison sentences, and both were well known to underworld figures on the East Coast. 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. Two other Baltimore police officers who were walking along the street nearby noted this maneuver. Ten of the persons who appeared before this grand jury breathed much more easily when they learned that no indictments had been returned. It was positively concluded that the packages of currency had been damaged prior to the time they were wrapped in the pieces of newspaper; and there were indications that the bills previously had been in a canvas container which was buried in ground consisting of sand and ashes. There are still suspicions among some readers that the late Tom O'Connor, a retired cop who worked Brinks security during the robbery, was a key player, despite his acquittal on robbery charges at . 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. Mr. Gilbert was 37 on the day of the attack, Oct. 20, 1981, when nearly $1.6 million in cash was stolen from an armored Brink's car outside the Nanuet Mall near Nyack. On March 4, 1950, pieces of an identical truck were found at a dump in Stoughton, Massachusetts. I think a fellow just passed a counterfeit $10.00 bill on me, he told the officer. Through long weeks of empty promises of assistance and deliberate stalling by the gang members, he began to realize that his threats were falling on deaf ears. It ultimately proved unproductive. In the series Edwyn Cooper (played by Dominic Cooper) is a lawyer who gets involved in the robbery, deciding he wants to earn some big bucks. Shortly thereafterduring the first week of Novembera 1949 green Ford stake-body truck was reported missing by a car dealer in Boston. They stole 26 million in gold bullion - the biggest robbery of . The Great Brinks Robbery of 1950 met all of these requirementsa great pile of cash disappeared with no evidence, leads, or suspects. His explanation: He had been drinking at a bar in Boston. Both denied knowledge of the loot that had been recovered. While the others stayed at the house to make a quick count of the loot, Pino and Faherty departed. . The Brink's-Mat robbery the name alone is enough to spark excitement in viewers of a certain age, such as your correspondent became one of the most celebrated cases, and convoluted plots . On October 20, 1981, a Brinks Company armored car was robbed of $1,589,000 in cash that it was preparing to transfer from the Nanuet National Bank in Clarkstown, N.Y. One of the guards of the. Two weeks of comparative quiet in the gang members lives were shattered on June 5, 1954, when an attempt was made on OKeefes life. 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. In the back were Pino, OKeefe, Baker, Faherty, Maffie, Gusciora, Michael Vincent Geagan (pictured), and Thomas Francis Richardson. 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. Yet, it only amounted to a near perfect crime. Well-known Boston hoodlums were picked up and questioned by police. Seven months later, however, he was again paroled. Well-meaning persons throughout the country began sending the FBI tips and theories which they hoped would assist in the investigation. A search of the hoodlums room in a Baltimore hotel (registered to him under an assumed name) resulted in the location of $3,780 that the officers took to police headquarters. Another week passedand approximately 500 more citizens were consideredbefore the 14-member jury was assembled. In the deportation fight that lasted more than two years, Pino won the final victory. The Brinks Mat Robbery: The real story that inspired The Gold. Although he had been known to carry a gun, burglaryrather than armed robberywas his criminal specialty, and his exceptional driving skill was an invaluable asset during criminal getaways. McGinnis had been arrested at the site of a still in New Hampshire in February 1954. Each of the five lock cylinders was taken on a separate occasion. Burlap money bags recovered in a Boston junk yard from the robbery, Some of the recovered money from the robbery. Todd Williamson/Getty Images David Ghantt attends the 2016 after party for the Hollywood premiere of Masterminds, based on the Loomis Fargo heist that he helped carry out. Between 1950 and 1954, the underworld occasionally rumbled with rumors that pressure was being exerted upon Boston hoodlums to contribute money for these criminals legal fight against the charges in Pennsylvania. On November 26, 1982, six armed robbers forced their way into the Brink's-Mat warehouse, the plan was to steal the 3.2m in cash they were expecting to find stored there. Two other men, ex-Brink's guard Thomas O'Connor and unemployed teacher Charles McCormick, were acquitted. There were the rope and adhesive tape used to bind and gag the employees and a chauffeurs cap that one of the robbers had left at the crime scene. From their prison cells, they carefully followed the legal maneuvers aimed at gaining them freedom. 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. Even if released, he thought, his days were numbered. From interviews with the five employees whom the criminals had confronted, it was learned that between five and seven robbers had entered the building. The Gold: The Inside Story will hear from the . On August 29, 1954, the officers suspicions were aroused by an automobile that circled the general vicinity of the abandoned car on five occasions. Binoculars were used in this phase of the casing operation. On October 20, 1981, members of the Black Liberation Army robbed a Brink's truck at the Nanuet Mall. What happened in the Brink's-Mat robbery? The FBI also succeeded in locating the carpenter who had remodeled the offices where the loot was hidden. Costa claimed that after working at the motor terminal until approximately 5:00 p.m. on January 17, 1950, he had gone home to eat dinner; then, at approximately 7:00 p.m., he left to return to the terminal and worked until about 9:00 p.m. The families of OKeefe and Gusciora resided in the vicinity of Stoughton, Massachusetts. The group were led . Like Gusciora, OKeefe was known to have associated with Pino prior to the Brinks robbery. They were held in lieu of bail which, for each man, amounted to more then $100,000. Photo courtesy Boston Public Library, Leslie Jones Collection. 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. However, by delving into the criminal world, Edwyn. They did not expect to find the Aladdin's cave to contain some 26m in gold bullion and diamonds that they stumbled upon. While on bond he returned to Boston; on January 23, 1954, he appeared in the Boston Municipal Court on the probation violation charge. Many tips were received from anonymous persons. BOSTON Friday, Jan. 17, 2020 marks 70 years since a group of armed and masked men stole millions of dollars from an armored car depot in the North End in what the FBI still calls "the crime of the century.". Pino was determined to fight against deportation. For example, from a citizen in California came the suggestion that the loot might be concealed in the Atlantic Ocean near Boston. Shortly after these two guns were found, one of them was placed in a trash barrel and was taken to the city dump. The ninth man had long been a principal suspect. 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. A few weeks later, OKeefe retrieved his share of the loot. 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. Apparently, they had planned a leisurely trip with an abundance of extracurricular activities.. ), (After serving his sentence, Fat John resumed a life of crime. That prison term, together with Pinos conviction in March 1928 for carnal abuse of a girl, provided the basis for the deportation action. The Brink Mat robbery was a heist that occurred at Heathrow International Trading Estate on November 26, 1983, when six armed robbers broke into a warehouse run by a US and British joint venture, Brink's Mat. He was certain he would be considered a strong suspect and wanted to begin establishing an alibi immediately.) The conviction for burglary in McKean County, Pennsylvania, still hung over his head, and legal fees remained to be paid. The record of the state trial covered more than 5,300 pages. In the end, the perfect crime had a perfect endingfor everyone but the robbers. On November 26, 1982, six armed robbers forced their way into the Brink's-Mat warehouse, the plan was to steal the 3.2m in cash they were expecting to find stored there. One Massachusetts racketeer, a man whose moral code mirrored his long years in the underworld, confided to the agents who were interviewing him, If I knew who pulled the job, I wouldnt be talking to you now because Id be too busy trying to figure a way to lay my hands on some of the loot.. The theft occurred in July when a Brink's big rig paused at a Grapevine truck stop while transporting jewelry from a Northern California trade show to the Southland. Banfield drove the truck to the house of Maffies parents in Roxbury. Occasionally, an offender who was facing a prison term would boast that he had hot information. The descriptions and serial numbers of these weapons were carefully noted since they might prove a valuable link to the men responsible for the crime. OKeefes reputation for nerve was legend. On the afternoon of July 9, he was visited by a clergyman. 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. This chauffeurs cap was left at the scene of the crime of the centurythe 1950 robbery of a Brink's bank branch in Massachusetts. OKeefe was wounded in the wrist and chest, but again he managed to escape with his life. There was James Ignatius Faherty, an armed robbery specialist whose name had been mentioned in underworld conversations in January 1950, concerning a score on which the gang members used binoculars to watch their intended victims count large sums of money. Released to McKean County, Pennsylvania, authorities early in January 1954 to stand trial for burglary, larceny, and receiving stolen goods, OKeefe also was confronted with a detainer filed by Massachusetts authorities. In September 1949, Pinos efforts to evade deportation met with success. At the time of their arrest, Faherty and Richardson were rushing for three loaded revolvers that they had left on a chair in the bathroom of the apartment. In addition to the general descriptions received from the Brinks employees, the investigators obtained several pieces of physical evidence. Despite the arrests and indictments in January 1956, more than $2,775,000, including $1,218,211.29 in cash, was still missing. 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. The detainer involved OKeefes violation of probation in connection with a conviction in 1945 for carrying concealed weapons. All identifying marks placed on currency and securities by the customers were noted, and appropriate stops were placed at banking institutions across the nation. 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. Because the money in the cooler was in various stages of decomposition, an accurate count proved most difficult to make. Burke, a professional killer, allegedly had been hired by underworld associates of OKeefe to assassinate him. On November 26, 1981, six armed men from South London broke into the Brink's-Mat warehouse near London Heathrow. The trip from the liquor store in Roxbury to the Brinks offices could be made in about 15 minutes. During this operation, one of the employees had lost his glasses; they later could not be found on the Brinks premises. He was granted a full pardon by the acting governor of Massachusetts. At 4:20 p.m. on January 6, 1956, OKeefe made the final decision. 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. FBI investigating $150 million jewelry heist of Brinks truck traveling from San Mateo County to Southern California. Both men remained mute following their arrests. On June 4, 1956 a man named "Fat John" admitted he had money that was linked to the Brink's robbery in his possession. Banfield had been a close associate of McGinnis for many years. The truck found at the dump had been reported stolen by a Ford dealer near Fenway Park in Boston on November 3, 1949. OKeefe wore crepe-soled shoes to muffle his footsteps; the others wore rubbers. (Geagan, who was on parole at the time, left the truck before it arrived at the home in Roxbury where the loot was unloaded. The robbery saw six armed men break into a security depot near London . A roll of waterproof adhesive tape used to gag and bind bank employees that was left at the scene of the crime. A third attempt on OKeefes life was made on June 16, 1954. Masterminded by Brian 'The Colonel' Robinson and Mickey McAvoy, the gang hoped to make off with 3 million in cash, a sum that's now equivalent to just over 9 million. Of the $4,822 found in the small-time criminals possession, FBI agents identified $4,635 as money taken by the Brinks robbers. All were guilty. They had brought no tools with them, however, and they were unsuccessful. Prior to this time, McGinnis had been at his liquor store. It was billed as the perfect crime and the the crime of the century.. This vehicle was traced through motor vehicle records to Pino. 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. Both of these strong-arm suspects had been questioned by Boston authorities following the robbery. On February 5, 1950, however, a police officer in Somerville, Massachusetts, recovered one of the four revolvers that had been taken by the robbers. OKeefe was bitter about a number of matters. The Transit's heavily armed occupants had stolen the bullion less than an hour earlier from the Brink's-Mat security warehouse 12 miles away at Heathrow. The thieves quickly bound the employees and began hauling away the loot. T he robbers were there because they knew there was 3 million in cash locked in the . At 10:25 p.m. on October 5, 1956, the jury retired to weigh the evidence. Following the federal grand jury hearings, the FBIs intense investigation continued. After a period of hostility, he began to display a friendly attitude. 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. The results were negative. Almost immediately, the gang began laying new plans. The team of burglars bypassed the truck's locking mechanism and used the storage containers to haul away precious gems, gold and other valuables. 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. At approximately 9:50 p.m., the details of this incident were furnished to the Baltimore Field Office of the FBI. During these weeks, OKeefe renewed his association with a Boston racketeer who had actively solicited funds for the defense of OKeefe and Gusciora in 1950. Some of the bills were in pieces. A thorough investigation was made concerning his whereabouts on the evening of January 17, 1950. This man, subsequently identified as a small-time Boston underworld figure, was located and questioned. Several hundred dollars were found hidden in the house but could not be identified as part of the loot. At the outset, very few facts were available to the investigators. 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. Subsequently, OKeefe left his carand the $200,000in a garage on Blue Hill Avenue in Boston. The Great Brink's Robbery was an armed robbery of the Brink's building in the North End of Boston, Massachusetts, on January 17, 1950. Pino, Richardson, and Costa each took $20,000, and this was noted on a score sheet. In the hope that a wide breach might have developed between the two criminals who were in jail in Pennsylvania and the gang members who were enjoying the luxuries of a free life in Massachusetts, FBI agents again visited Gusciora and OKeefe. 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. The new proceedings were based upon the fact that Pino had been arrested in December 1948 for a larceny involving less than $100. Perhaps most remarkable, its mastermind didn't even have a criminal record when he planned it out. Three of the remaining five gang members were previously accounted for, OKeefe and Gusciora being in prison on other charges and Banfield being dead. OKeefes racketeer associate, who allegedly had assisted him in holding Costa for ransom and was present during the shooting scrape between OKeefe and Baker, disappeared on August 3, 1954. This man claimed to have no knowledge of Pinos involvement in the Brinks robbery.). The heist happened on Prince Street in Boston's North End on Jan. 17, 1950. Due to his criminal record, the Immigration and Naturalization Service instituted proceedings in 1941 to deport him. Former inmates of penal institutions reported conversations they had overheard while incarcerated which concerned the robbing of Brinks. But according to the ruling filed in B.C., Brinks paid the money back immediately after the victim bank notified the company that a robbery had occurred making use of "keys, access codes and . 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. This is good money, he said, but you cant pass it around here in Boston.. During the period immediately following the Brinks robbery, the heat was on OKeefe and Gusciora. After these plans were reviewed and found to be unhelpful, OKeefe and Gusciora returned them in the same manner. If passing police had looked closer early that Saturday morning on November 26, 1983, they would have noticed the van was weighted down below its wheel arches with three tons of gold. Even after these convictions, OKeefe and Gusciora continued to seek their release. LOS ANGELES COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- The FBI and the Los Angeles County. Inside the building, the gang members carefully studied all available information concerning Brinks schedules and shipments. 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. There were recurring rumors that this hoodlum, Joseph Sylvester Banfield (pictured), had been right down there on the night of the crime. 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. The criminals had been looking to do a. From his cell in Springfield, OKeefe wrote bitter letters to members of the Brinks gang and persisted in his demands for money. In 1936 and 1937, Faherty was convicted of armed robbery violations. You'd be forgiven for mistaking the 2005 Miami Brinks heist for a movie script.