McGinnis had been arrested at the site of a still in New Hampshire in February 1954. As the robbers sped from the scene, a Brinks employee telephoned the Boston Police Department. 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 O'Keefe later claimed that he had never seen his portion of the loot after he had given it to Maffie for safekeeping. According to the criminal who was arrested in Baltimore, Fat John subsequently told him that the money was part of the Brinks loot and offered him $5,000 if he would pass $30,000 of the bills. acknowledges it was involved in the gold transport. While action to appeal the convictions was being taken on their behalf, the eight men were removed to the State prison at Walpole, Massachusetts. Each of these leads was checked out. Pino previously had arranged for this man to keep his shop open beyond the normal closing time on nights when Pino requested him to do so. The FBIs jurisdiction to investigate this robbery was based upon the fact that cash, checks, postal notes, and United States money orders of the Federal Reserve Bank and the Veterans Administration district office in Boston were included in the loot. All five employees had been forced at gunpoint to lie face down on the floor. The Bureau was convinced that it had identified the actual robbers, but evidence and witnesses had to be found. 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. A federal search warrant was obtained, and the home was searched by agents on April 27, 1950. Faherty and Richardson fled to avoid apprehension and subsequently were placed on the list of the FBIs Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. Burke traveled to Boston and shot O'Keefe, seriously wounding him but failed to kill him. At 10:25 p.m. on October 5, 1956, the jury retired to weigh the evidence. In the deportation fight that lasted more than two years, Pino won the final victory. Eight of the gang's members received maximum sentences of life imprisonment. Other information provided by OKeefe helped to fill the gaps which still existed. 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. 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. 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. As this bag was being emptied later that evening, the glasses were discovered and destroyed by the gang. WebSix armed men broke into the Brinks-Mat security depot near Londons Heathrow airport and inadvertently stumbled across gold bullion worth 26m. FBI.gov is an official site of the U.S. Department of Justice. The FBI further learned that four revolvers had been taken by the gang. On June 2, 1950, OKeefe and Gusciora left Boston by automobile for the alleged purpose of visiting the grave of Guscioras brother in Missouri. 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. The new proceedings were based upon the fact that Pino had been arrested in December 1948 for a larceny involving less than $100. The trip from the liquor store in Roxbury to the Brinks offices could be made in about 15 minutes. 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. This man subsequently identified locks from doors which the Brinks gang had entered as being similar to the locks which Pino had brought him. As a government witness, he reluctantly would have testified 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. OKeefe and Gusciora had been close friends for many years. At the time of his arrest, there also was a charge of armed robbery outstanding against him in Massachusetts. The truck found at the dump had been reported stolen by a Ford dealer near Fenway Park in Boston on November 3, 1949. Even if released, he thought, his days were numbered. [14] By 7:37, one of the Brink's employees managed to free themselves and raise the alarm. After completing its hearings on January 9, 1953, the grand jury retired to weigh the evidence. The families of OKeefe and Gusciora resided in the vicinity of Stoughton, Massachusetts. At the time it was Britains Two of the gang members moved toward the door to capture him; but, seeing the garage attendant walk away apparently unaware that the robbery was being committed, they did not pursue him. Due to his criminal record, the Immigration and Naturalization Service instituted proceedings in 1941 to deport him. [14] They each wore a chauffeur cap, pea coat, rubber Halloween mask, and each had a .38 caliber revolver. Within two months of his return, another member of the gang suffered a legal setback. 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. WebRobbery Seven of the group went into the Brink's building: OKeefe, Gusciora, Baker, Maffie, Geagan, Faherty, and Richardson. Immediately upon leaving, the gang loaded the loot into the truck that was parked on Prince Street near the door. Here, we look at the people involved and where they are now. Allegedly, he pulled a gun on OKeefe; several shots were exchanged by the two men, but none of the bullets found their mark. After each interview, FBI agents worked feverishly into the night checking all parts of his story which were subject to verification. During his brief stay in Boston, he was observed to contact other members of the robbery gang. Some of the bills were in pieces. 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. The ninth man had long been a principal suspect. Pino paid a small ransom but then decided to try to kill O'Keefe. 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. 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. Of the $4,822 found in the small-time criminals possession, FBI agents identified $4,635 as money taken by the Brinks robbers. The recovery of part of the loot was a severe blow to the gang members who still awaited trial in Boston. WebThe Brinks Robbery The idea for the heist came from Joseph Big Joe McGinniss, but career criminal Anthony Fats Pino. Until the FBI and its partners painstakingly solved the case. After careful checking, the FBI eliminated eight of the suspects. At least four movies were based, or partially based, on the Great Brink's Robbery: Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}422202N 710327W / 42.3672N 71.0575W / 42.3672; -71.0575. He subsequently was convicted and executed.). This phase of the investigation was pursued exhaustively. Neither Pino nor McGinnis was known to be the type of hoodlum who would undertake so potentially dangerous a crime without the best strong-arm support available. (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. After continuing up the street to the end of the playground which adjoined the Brinks building, the truck stopped. Brian The Colonel Robinson, 78, was cheated out of his share of the record haul. The person ringing the buzzer was a garage attendant. 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. They were held in lieu of bail which, for each man, amounted to more then $100,000. On October 11, 1950, Gusciora was sentenced to serve from five to 20 years in the Western Pennsylvania Penitentiary at Pittsburgh. Sentenced to serve from five to seven years for this offense, he was released from prison in September 1941. Later, when he counted the money, he found that the suitcase contained $98,000. The alibi, in fact, was almost too good. Much of the money taken from the money changer appeared to have been stored a long time. This was a question which preyed heavily upon their minds. Before his trial in McKean County, he was released on $17,000 bond. Race tracks and gambling establishments also were covered in the hope of finding some of the loot in circulation. What happened in the Brinks-Matt robbery? As the truck drove past the Brinks offices, the robbers noted that the lights were out on the Prince Street side of the building. John had a smelter in his garden hut near Bath. All efforts to identify the persons responsible for the theft and the persons who had cut up the truck were unsuccessful. At the outset, very few facts were available to the investigators. Banfield was already dead. WebWho Was Involved In The Brinks Robbery? In addition to mold, insect remains also were found on the loot. 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. All were paroled by 1971 except McGinnis, who died in prison. The truck that the robbers had used was found cut to pieces in Stoughton, Massachusetts, near O'Keefe's home. 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. The gang at that time included all of the participants in the January 17, 1950, robbery except Henry Baker. After the truck parts were found, additional suspicion was attached to these men. At 4:20 p.m. on January 6, 1956, OKeefe made the final decision. You get me released, and Ill solve the case in no time, these criminals would claim. Even fearing the new bills might be linked with the crime, McGinnis suggested a process for aging the new money in a hurry.. He had been released on parole from the Norfolk, Massachusetts, Prison Colony on August 22, 1949only five months before the robbery. Among the early suspects was Anthony Pino, an alien who had been a principal suspect in numerous major robberies and burglaries in Massachusetts. 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. Two other Baltimore police officers who were walking along the street nearby noted this maneuver. The other keys in their possession enabled them to proceed to the second floor where they took the five Brinks employees by surprise. Investigation revealed that Geagan, a laborer, had not gone to work on January 17 or 18, 1950.). 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. Again, the FBIs investigation resulted merely in the elimination of more possible suspects. None of these materialized because the gang did not consider the conditions to be favorable. All were denied, and the impaneling of the jury was begun on August 7. Shortly after these two guns were found, one of them was placed in a trash barrel and was taken to the city dump. On January 12, 1953, Pino was released on bail pending a deportation hearing. WebOne of the robbers, Micky McAvoy, entrusted his share to associates Brian Perry and George Francis. [21] Any information police could get from their informers initially proved useless. During November and December 1949, the approach to the Brinks building and the flight over the getaway route were practiced to perfection. Rumors from the underworld pointed suspicion at several criminal gangs. 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. The FBI also succeeded in locating the carpenter who had remodeled the offices where the loot was hidden. This vehicle was traced through motor vehicle records to Pino. WebJudith Clark was paroled in 2019 after then Gov. Each carried a pair of gloves. Pino, Richardson, and Costa each took $20,000, and this was noted on a score sheet. [3] After five aborted runs, Costa finally gave the go-ahead on the night of January 17, 1950. During this operation, one of the employees had lost his glasses; they later could not be found on the Brinks premises. His explanation: He had been drinking at a bar in Boston. Prior to his murder, Subsequently, this machine gun was identified as having been used in the attempt on OKeefes life. 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. The defense immediately filed motions which would delay or prevent the trial. A trial began on August 6, 1956. ), (After serving his sentence, Fat John resumed a life of crime. From his cell in Springfield, OKeefe wrote bitter letters to members of the Brinks gang and persisted in his demands for money. And it nearly was. OKeefe immediately returned to Boston to await the results of the appeal. O'Keefe pleaded guilty January 18. 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. Ten of the persons who appeared before this grand jury breathed much more easily when they learned that no indictments had been returned. other securities in the 1950 Brinks heist. OKeefe claimed that he left his hotel room in Boston at approximately 7:00 p.m. on January 17, 1950. 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 arrived in Baltimore on the morning of June 3 and was picked up by the Baltimore Police Department that evening. 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. The only physical evidence left at the crime scene was a cap and the tape and rope used to bind up the employees. The amusement arcade operator told the officer that he had followed the man who passed this $10.00 bill to a nearby tavern. This incident also took place in Dorchester and involved the firing of more than 30 shots. A number of them discontinued their operations; others indicated a strong desire that the robbers be identified and apprehended. An acetylene torch had been used to cut up the truck, and it appeared that a sledge hammer also had been used to smash many of the heavy parts, such as the motor. 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. 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. WebBrian Robinson was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to 25 years in prison. 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. Despite the arrests and indictments in January 1956, more than $2,775,000, including $1,218,211.29 in cash, was still missing. Jeweler and also a bullion dealer, John Palmer, was arrested. Both are real characters. And what of McGinnis himself? Both denied knowledge of the loot that had been recovered. More than 100 persons took the stand as witnesses for the prosecution and the defense during September 1956. This is not the first time that Cuomo has commuted a sentence for someone involved in the Brink's robbery. Thirteen people were detained in the hours following the robbery, including two former employees of Brink's. [13] Most of the cash stolen was in denominations of $1 to $20, which made it nearly impossible to trace the bills through serial numbers. On August 30, he was taken into custody as a suspicious person. Gusciora died on July 9. 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. After receiving the go ahead signal from Costa, the seven armed men walked to the Prince Street entrance of Brinks. 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. 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. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. During this visit, Gusciora got up from his bed, and, in full view of the clergyman, slipped to the floor, striking his head. This man, subsequently identified as a small-time Boston underworld figure, was located and questioned. Before the robbery was carried out, all of the participants were well acquainted with the Brinks premises. Had any particles of evidence been found in the loot which might directly show that they had handled it? If Baker heard these rumors, he did not wait around very long to see whether they were true. 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. The police officer said he had been talking to McGinnis first, and Pino arrived later to join them. 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. 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. Even after these convictions, OKeefe and Gusciora continued to seek their release. He had been convicted of armed robbery in 1940 and served several months in the Massachusetts State Reformatory and the Norfolk, Massachusetts, Prison Colony. 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. I think a fellow just passed a counterfeit $10.00 bill on me, he told the officer. All had been published in Boston between December 4, 1955, and February 21, 1956. Richardson had participated with Faherty in an armed robbery in February 1934. (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. Continuous investigation, however, had linked him with the gang. That prison term, together with Pinos conviction in March 1928 for carnal abuse of a girl, provided the basis for the deportation action. Burke, a professional killer, allegedly had been hired by underworld associates of OKeefe to assassinate him. 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. Considerable thought was given to every detail. Pino had been at his home in the Roxbury Section of Boston until approximately 7:00 p.m.; then he walked to the nearby liquor store of Joseph McGinnis. It ultimately proved unproductive. 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. 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. Many problems and dangers were involved in such a robbery, and the plans never crystallized. This phase of the investigation greatly disturbed many gamblers. Reports had been received alleging that he had held up several gamblers in the Boston area and had been involved in shakedowns of bookies.

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