The Great Brink's Robbery: $2 Million Stolen in Boston
Eleven men spent two years studying every detail of the Brink's building at the corner of Prince and Commercial Streets in Boston. They memorized guard schedules, tested lock-picking tools, and made duplicate keys from wax impressions. On the night of January 17, 1950, they entered through five locked doors wearing Navy pea coats, chauffeur caps, and Halloween masks. They bound the guards with rope and duct tape and emptied the vault of .2 million in cash and .5 million in checks and securities. The robbery went unsolved for six years. The statute of limitations was eleven days from expiring when one of the gang members, Joseph 'Specs' O'Keefe, broke the code of silence after being shot by a hitman sent by his own partners. Eight men were convicted. Almost none of the cash was ever recovered, and the Brink's job became the blueprint for heist movies.
January 17, 1950
76 years ago
Key Figures & Places
Boston, Massachusetts
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Great Brinks Robbery
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Boston
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Great Brink's Robbery
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Great Brink's Robbery
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Boston
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gangs
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Geldtransport
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Brink's
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heist
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United States dollar
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Das große Dings bei Brinks
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Peter Falk
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