Havelock Bank Robbery | |
---|---|
Location | Toronto-Dominion Bank, Havelock, Ontario |
Date | August 31, 1961 |
Attack type | Robbery |
Weapons | M1 carbine, revolvers |
Deaths | 0 |
Injured | 0 |
Perpetrators | Yvon Lalonde, Roger Poirier, Jean Claude Lalonde, Roger Martel, Hermyle Lalonde |
Motive | Robbery |
The Havelock Bank Robbery was a 1961 armed robbery of bank bonds plus $230,000 cash from the Toronto-Dominion Bank branch in Havelock, Ontario.
The five robbers were arrested; one died in custody and the other four were found guilty. The money was never found.
31 August 1961 was the pay day of three local mining companies, and therefore a day in which the Havelock branch of Toronto-Dominion Bank would have more money than usual. [1]
During the early morning of 31 August, four men entered the basement window of the Toronto-Dominion Bank in the small town of Havelock, Ontario, while another waited in the get-away car. [1] The assailants waited for staff to arrive, and once they did at 9:15am, the armed robbers politely demanded bank worker William Lindup to open the safe and put the contents into a duffel bag, fleeing minutes later with $230,000 of cash plus bank bonds. [1] [2] The five robbers were armed with revolvers and an M1 carbine semi-automatic rifle. [2]
As they waited, the neighbouring butcher spotted their Buick vehicle, felt it was suspicious and noted down the license plate. [1]
The robbers fled the scene in their vehicle, their escape was initially blocked by a bulldozer. [1] Police chased them along rural roads on the Canadian Shield, and again their escape was delayed when a car with a punctured tire blocked a single-lane road. [1] [3] After hitting a rock and abandoning their vehicles, [4] the robbers exchanged gunfire with the police and escaped into the wilderness east of the Crowe River. [3] [1]
The Ontario Provincial Police launched a search of the area, involving 75 officers, and captured the suspects on 3 and 4 September [2] near Ontario Highway 62. [3] [5] Yvon Lalonde and one other robber were spotted on 3 September by lumber mill operator Martin Murphy, and Lalonde was arrested by police hours later. [2] On 4 September, three suspects were found by Frederick Andrews of Stirling, one of many civilians who were helping the police with the search. [1] Police constable John Martin then arrested three men, before they were taken to Millbridge. [2] They were initially held in Peterborough County jail, [3] [5] later transferring them to Whitby jail. [1]
One of the robbers died of a heart attack while in custody. [6] The remaining four were found guilty after nine days of trial starting in January 1962. [6]
As of 2014, The Royal Canadian Mint stated that none of the money was found in circulation. [3] According to The Toronto Star, the robbery "was considered one of the biggest bank robberies in Canadian history." [1]
Despite two years of planning, the series of delays in their escape resulted in them becoming known as the "bad luck bank robbers". [1]
All five robbers, known as the Red Hood Gang, [7] were French-Canadians from Montreal, Quebec. [8] [6] Jean Claude Lalonde, Yvon Lalone, Roger Poirier, and Roger Martel were found guilty, Hermyle Lalonde died before the trial. [9]
The robbery was the subject of the 2006 book Bad Luck Bank Robbers, by Grace Barker, and a 2014 play produced by the 4th Line Theatre also called Bad Luck Bank Robbers. [3] [10] The play was written by Alex Poch-Goldin and directed by Kim Blackwell. [11]
The township of Wollaston, Ontario, changed the name of the street where the robbers abandoned their vehicle to Bank Robbers Lane. [4]
Havelock Bank Robbery | |
---|---|
Location | Toronto-Dominion Bank, Havelock, Ontario |
Date | August 31, 1961 |
Attack type | Robbery |
Weapons | M1 carbine, revolvers |
Deaths | 0 |
Injured | 0 |
Perpetrators | Yvon Lalonde, Roger Poirier, Jean Claude Lalonde, Roger Martel, Hermyle Lalonde |
Motive | Robbery |
The Havelock Bank Robbery was a 1961 armed robbery of bank bonds plus $230,000 cash from the Toronto-Dominion Bank branch in Havelock, Ontario.
The five robbers were arrested; one died in custody and the other four were found guilty. The money was never found.
31 August 1961 was the pay day of three local mining companies, and therefore a day in which the Havelock branch of Toronto-Dominion Bank would have more money than usual. [1]
During the early morning of 31 August, four men entered the basement window of the Toronto-Dominion Bank in the small town of Havelock, Ontario, while another waited in the get-away car. [1] The assailants waited for staff to arrive, and once they did at 9:15am, the armed robbers politely demanded bank worker William Lindup to open the safe and put the contents into a duffel bag, fleeing minutes later with $230,000 of cash plus bank bonds. [1] [2] The five robbers were armed with revolvers and an M1 carbine semi-automatic rifle. [2]
As they waited, the neighbouring butcher spotted their Buick vehicle, felt it was suspicious and noted down the license plate. [1]
The robbers fled the scene in their vehicle, their escape was initially blocked by a bulldozer. [1] Police chased them along rural roads on the Canadian Shield, and again their escape was delayed when a car with a punctured tire blocked a single-lane road. [1] [3] After hitting a rock and abandoning their vehicles, [4] the robbers exchanged gunfire with the police and escaped into the wilderness east of the Crowe River. [3] [1]
The Ontario Provincial Police launched a search of the area, involving 75 officers, and captured the suspects on 3 and 4 September [2] near Ontario Highway 62. [3] [5] Yvon Lalonde and one other robber were spotted on 3 September by lumber mill operator Martin Murphy, and Lalonde was arrested by police hours later. [2] On 4 September, three suspects were found by Frederick Andrews of Stirling, one of many civilians who were helping the police with the search. [1] Police constable John Martin then arrested three men, before they were taken to Millbridge. [2] They were initially held in Peterborough County jail, [3] [5] later transferring them to Whitby jail. [1]
One of the robbers died of a heart attack while in custody. [6] The remaining four were found guilty after nine days of trial starting in January 1962. [6]
As of 2014, The Royal Canadian Mint stated that none of the money was found in circulation. [3] According to The Toronto Star, the robbery "was considered one of the biggest bank robberies in Canadian history." [1]
Despite two years of planning, the series of delays in their escape resulted in them becoming known as the "bad luck bank robbers". [1]
All five robbers, known as the Red Hood Gang, [7] were French-Canadians from Montreal, Quebec. [8] [6] Jean Claude Lalonde, Yvon Lalone, Roger Poirier, and Roger Martel were found guilty, Hermyle Lalonde died before the trial. [9]
The robbery was the subject of the 2006 book Bad Luck Bank Robbers, by Grace Barker, and a 2014 play produced by the 4th Line Theatre also called Bad Luck Bank Robbers. [3] [10] The play was written by Alex Poch-Goldin and directed by Kim Blackwell. [11]
The township of Wollaston, Ontario, changed the name of the street where the robbers abandoned their vehicle to Bank Robbers Lane. [4]