The Brinks Robbery
The
Investigation | Hundreds
of Dead Ends | Field
of Suspects Narrows |
Grand
Jury Hearings | Pino's
Deportation Troubles | Hatred
and Dissention Increase | O'Keefe
Confesses | Arrests
and Indictments | Part
of the Loot Recovered | Death
of Gusciora | Trial
of Remaining Defendants
Shortly
before 7:30 p.m. on the evening of January 17,
1950, a group of armed, masked men emerged from
165 Prince
Street in Boston, Massachusetts, dragging bags
containing $1,218,211.29 in cash and $1,557,183.83
in checks,
money orders, and other securities. These men
had just committed the "crime of the century," the "perfect
crime," the "fabulous Brink's robbery." At
7:27 p.m. as the robbers sped from the scene,
a Brink's employee telephoned the Boston Police
Department.
Minutes later, police arrived at the Brink's
building, and Special Agents of the FBI quickly
joined in
the
investigation.
At
the outset, very few facts were available to the
investigators. From interviews with the five employees
whom the criminals had confronted, it was learned
that between five and seven robbers had entered the
building. All of them wore Navy-type peacoats, gloves,
and chauffeur's caps. Each robber's face was completely
concealed behind a Halloween-type mask. To muffle
their footsteps, one of the gang wore crepe-soled
shoes, and the others wore rubbers.
"Captain Marvel, Jr."
|
"Captain Marvel"
|
The
robbers did little talking. They moved with a studied
precision which suggested that the crime had been
carefully planned and rehearsed in the preceding
months. Somehow the criminals had opened at least
three--and possibly four--locked doors to gain entrance
to the second floor of Brink's, where the five employees
were engaged in their nightly chore of checking and
storing the money collected from Brink's customers
that day.
All
five employees had been forced at gunpoint to lie
face down on the floor. Their hands were tied behind
their backs and adhesive tape was placed over their
mouths. During this operation, one of the employees
had lost his glasses; they later could not be found
on the Brink's premises.
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. 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. The person ringing
the buzzer was a garage attendant. 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.
The
Investigation
In addition
to the general descriptions received from the Brink's
employees, the investigators obtained several pieces
of physical evidence. There were the rope and adhesive
tape used to bind and gag the employees and a chauffeur's
cap which one of the robbers had left at the crime
scene.
The
FBI further learned that four revolvers had been
taken by the gang. 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.
In
the hours immediately following the robbery, the
underworld began to feel the heat of the investigation.
Well-known Boston hoodlums were picked up and questioned
by police. From Boston, the pressure quickly spread
to other cities. Veteran criminals throughout the
United States found their activities during mid-January
the subject of official inquiry.
Since
Brink's 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. A systematic check
of current and past Brink's employees was undertaken;
personnel of the three-story building housing the
Brink's offices were questioned; inquiries were made
concerning salesmen, messengers, and others who had
called at Brink's and might know its physical layout
as well as its operational procedures.
An
immediate effort also was made to obtain descriptive
data concerning the missing cash and securities.
Brink's customers were contacted for information
regarding the packaging and shipping materials they
used. All identifying marks placed on currency and
securities by the customers were noted, and appropriate "stops" were
placed at banking institutions across the Nation.
TOP OF PAGE
Hundreds
of Dead Ends
The
Brink's case was "front page" news. Even
before Brink's, 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.
Well-meaning persons throughout the country began
sending the FBI "tips" and theories which
they hoped would assist in the investigation.
For
example, from a citizen in California came the suggestion
that the loot might be concealed in the Atlantic
Ocean near Boston. (A detailed survey of the Boston
waterfront previously had been made by the FBI.)
Former inmates of penal institutions reported conversations
they had overheard while incarcerated which concerned
the robbing of Brink's. Each of these leads was checked
out. None proved fruitful.
Many
other types of information were received. 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. A thorough investigation was
made concerning his whereabouts on the evening of
January 17, 1950. He was not involved in the Brink's
robbery.
Rumors
from the underworld pointed suspicion at several
criminal gangs. Members of the "Purple Gang" of
the 1930s found that there was renewed interest in
their activities. Another old gang which had specialized
in hijacking bootlegged whiskey in the Boston area
during Prohibition became the subject of inquiries.
Again, the FBI's investigation resulted merely in
the elimination of more possible suspects.
Many "tips" were
received from anonymous persons. On the night of
January 17, 1952--exactly two years after the crime
occurred--the FBI's Boston Office received an anonymous
telephone call from an individual who claimed he
was sending a letter identifying the Brink's robbers.
Information received from this individual linked
nine well-known hoodlums with the crime. After careful
checking, the FBI eliminated eight of the suspects.
The ninth man had long been a principal suspect.
He later was to be arrested as a member of the robbery
gang.
Of
the hundreds of New England hoodlums contacted by
FBI Agents in the weeks immediately following the
robbery, few were willing to be interviewed. Occasionally,
an offender who was facing a prison term would boast
that he had "hot" information. "You
get me released, and I'll solve the case in no time," these
criminals would claim.
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 wouldn't be talking to you
now because I'd be too busy trying to figure a way
to lay my hands on some of the loot."
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. Race tracks and gambling establishments
also were covered in the hope of finding some of
the loot in circulation. This phase of the investigation
greatly disturbed many gamblers. A number of them
discontinued their operations; others indicated a
strong desire that the robbers be identified and
apprehended.
The
mass of information gathered during the early weeks
of the investigation was continuously sifted. All
efforts to identify the gang members through the
chauffeur's hat, the rope, and the adhesive tape
which had been left in Brink's proved unsuccessful.
On February 5, 1950, however, a police officer in
Somerville, Massachusetts, recovered one of the four
revolvers which had been taken by the robbers. 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.
Shortly
after these two guns were found, one of them was
placed in a trash barrel and was taken to the city
dump. The other gun was picked up by the officer
and identified as having been taken during the Brink's
robbery. A detailed search for additional weapons
was made at the Mystic River. The results were negative.
Through
the interviews of persons in the vicinity of the
Brink's 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 Brink's at approximately the
time of the robbery. From the size of the loot and
the number of men involved, it was logical that the
gang might have used a truck. This lead was pursued
intensively.
On
March 4, 1950, pieces of an identical truck were
found at a dump in Stoughton, Massachusetts. 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. The truck
pieces were concealed in fiber bags when found. Had
the ground not been frozen, the person or persons
who abandoned the bags probably would have attempted
to bury them.
"Sisal bags and truck parts found at the dump in Stougnton,MA in March
1950"
|
The
truck found at the dump had been reported stolen
by a Ford dealer near Fenway Park in Boston on November
3, 1949. All efforts to identify the persons responsible
for the theft and the persons who had cut up the
truck were unsuccessful.
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. Thorough inquiries were
made concerning the disposition of the bags after
their receipt by the Massachusetts firm. This phase
of the investigation was pursued exhaustively. It
proved unproductive.
Nonetheless,
the finding of the truck parts at Stoughton, Massachusetts,
was to prove a valuable "break" in the
investigation. Two of the participants in the Brink's
robbery lived in the Stoughton area. After the truck
parts were found, additional suspicion was attached
to these men.
TOP OF PAGE
Field
of Suspects Narrows
As
the investigation developed and thousands of leads
were followed to dead ends, the broad field of possible
suspects gradually began to narrow. Among the early
suspects was Anthony Pino, an alien who had been
a principal suspect in numerous major robberies and
burglaries in Massachusetts. Pino was known in the
underworld as an excellent "case man" and
it was said that the "casing" of the Brink's
offices bore his "trademark." Pino had
been questioned as to his whereabouts on the evening
of January 17, 1950, and he provided a good alibi.
The alibi, in fact, was almost too good. 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. Subsequently,
he engaged in a conversation with McGinnis and a
Boston police officer. The officer verified the meeting.
The alibi was strong, but not conclusive. The police
officer said he had been talking to McGinnis first,
and Pino arrived later to join them. The trip from
the liquor store in Roxbury to the Brink's offices
could be made in about 15 minutes. Pino could have
been at McGinnis' liquor store shortly after 7:30
p.m. on January 17, 1950, and still have participated
in the robbery.
And
what of McGinnis himself? Commonly regarded as a
dominant figure in the Boston underworld, McGinnis
previously had been convicted of robbery and narcotics
violations. Underworld sources described him as fully
capable of planning and executing the Brink's robbery.
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. If local hoodlums were involved,
it was difficult to believe that McGinnis could be
as ignorant of the crime as he claimed.
Stanley Albert Gusciora
|
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.
Two of the prime suspects whose nerve and gun-handling
experience suited them for the Brink's robbery were
Joseph James O'Keefe and Stanley Albert Gusciora.
O'Keefe and Gusciora reportedly had "worked" together
on a number of occasions. Both had served prison
sentences, and both were well known to underworld
figures on the East Coast. O'Keefe's reputation for
nerve was legend. Reports had been received alleging
that he had held up several gamblers in the Boston
area and had been involved in "shakedowns" of
bookies. Like Gusciora, O'Keefe was known to have
associated with Pino prior to the Brink's robbery.
Both of these "strong-arm" suspects had
been questioned by Boston authorities following the
robbery. Neither had too convincing an alibi. O'Keefe
claimed that he left his hotel room in Boston at
approximately 7:00 p.m. on January 17, 1950. Following
the robbery, authorities attempted unsuccessfully
to locate him at the hotel. His explanation: He had
been drinking at a bar in Boston. Gusciora also claimed
to have been drinking that evening.
The
families of O'Keefe and Gusciora resided in the vicinity
of Stoughton, Massachusetts. When the pieces of the
1949 green Ford stake-body truck were found at the
dump in Stoughton on March 4, 1950, additional emphasis
was placed on the investigations concerning them.
Local officers searched their homes, but no evidence
linking them with the truck or the robbery was found.
In
April, 1950, the FBI received information indicating
that part of the Brink's loot was hidden in the home
of a relative of O'Keefe in Boston. A Federal search
warrant was obtained, and the home was searched by
Special Agents on April 27, 1950. Several hundred
dollars were found hidden in the house but could
not be identified as part of the loot.
On
June 2, 1950, O'Keefe and Gusciora left Boston by
automobile for the alleged purpose of visiting the
grave of Gusciora's brother in Missouri. Apparently,
they had planned a leisurely trip with an abundance
of "extracurricular activities." On June
12, 1950, they were arrested at Towanda, Pennsylvania,
and guns and clothing which were the loot from burglaries
at Kane and Coudersport, Pennsylvania, were found
in their possession.
Following
their arrests, a former bondsman in Boston made frequent
trips to Towanda in an unsuccessful effort to secure
their release on bail. On September 8, 1950, O'Keefe
was sentenced to three years in the Bradford County
Jail at Towanda and fined $3,000 for violation of
the Uniform Firearms Act. 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. On
October 11, 1950, Gusciora was sentenced to serve
from five to twenty years in the Western Pennsylvania
Penitentiary at Pittsburgh.
Even
after these convictions, O'Keefe and Gusciora continued
to seek their release. 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. 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 O'Keefe on "the
Big Job."
Despite
the lack of evidence and witnesses upon which court
proceedings could be based, as the investigation
progressed there was little doubt that O'Keefe had
been one of the central figures in the Brink's robbery.
Pino also was linked with the robbery, and there
was every reason to suspect that O'Keefe felt Pino
was turning his back on him now that O'Keefe was
in jail.
Both
O'Keefe and Gusciora had been interviewed on several
occasions concerning the Brink's robbery, but they
had claimed complete ignorance. 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 O'Keefe. Even in their jail cells, however,
they showed no respect for law enforcement.
In
pursuing the underworld rumors concerning the principal
suspects in the Brink's case, the FBI succeeded in
identifying more probable members of the gang. There
was Adolph "Jazz" Maffie, one of the hoodlums
who allegedly was being "pressured" to
contribute money for the legal battle of O'Keefe
and Gusciora against Pennsylvania authorities. He
had been questioned concerning his whereabouts on
January 17, 1950, and was unable to provide any specific
account of where he had been.
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.
He had been released on parole from the Norfolk,
Massachusetts, Prison Colony on August 22, 1949--only
five months before the robbery. 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 Baker's release
in 1949, Pino was on hand to drive him back to Boston.
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. Since he claimed to have met
no one and to have stopped nowhere during his walk,
he actually could have been doing anything between
7:00 and 9:00 on the night of the crime.Prominent
among the other strong suspects was Vincent James
Costa, brother-in-law of Pino. Costa was associated
with Pino in the operation of a motor terminal and
a lottery in Boston. He had been convicted of armed
robbery in 1940 and served several months in the
Massachusetts State Reformatory and the Norfolk,
Massachusetts, Prison Colony. 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
FBI's analysis of the alibis offered by the suspects
showed that the hour of 7:00 p.m. on January 17,
1950, was frequently mentioned. O'Keefe 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.
Since the robbery had taken place between approximately
7:10 and 7:27 p.m., it was quite probable that a
gang - as well drilled as the Brink's robbers obviously
were - would have arranged to rendezvous at a specific
time. 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.
TOP OF PAGE
Grand
Jury Hearings
Any
doubts which the Brink's 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
FBI's 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. 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. Unfortunately,
this proved to be an idle hope.
After
completing its hearings on January 9, 1953, the Grand
Jury retired to weigh the evidence. In a report which
was released on January 16, 1953, the Grand Jury
disclosed that its members did not feel they possessed
complete, positive information as to the identify
of the participants in the Brink's robbery because
(1) the participants were effectively disguised;
(2) there was a lack of eyewitnesses to the crime
itself; and (3) certain witnesses refused to give
testimony, and the Grand Jury was unable to compel
them to do so.
Ten
of the persons who appeared before this Grand Jury
breathed much more easily when they learned that
no indictments had been returned. 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 Brink's robbery. Following the
Federal Grand Jury hearings, the FBI's intense investigation
continued. J. Edgar Hoover and his men were convinced
that they had identified the actual robbers, but
evidence and witnesses had to be found.
TOP OF PAGE
Pino's
Deportation Troubles
While
O'Keefe and Gusciora lingered in jail in Pennsylvania,
Pino encountered difficulties of his own. Born in
Italy in 1907, Pino was a very young child when he
entered the United States. But he never became a
naturalized citizen. Due to his criminal record,
the Immigration and Naturalization Service instituted
proceedings in 1941 to deport him. 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.
That
prison term, together with Pino's conviction in March,
1928, for carnal abuse of a girl, provided the basis
for the deportation action. Pino determined to fight
against deportation. In the late Summer of 1944,
he was released from the state prison and was taken
into custody by Immigration authorities. During the
preceding year, however, he had filed a petition
for pardon in the hope of removing one of the criminal
convictions from his record.
In
September, 1949, Pino's efforts to evade deportation
met with success. He was granted a full pardon by
the Acting Governor of Massachusetts. The pardon
meant that his record no longer contained the second
conviction; thus, the Immigration and Naturalization
Service no longer had grounds to deport him.
On
January 10, 1953, following his appearance before
the Federal Grand Jury in connection with the Brink's
case, Pino was taken into custody again as a deportable
alien. The new proceedings were based upon the fact
that Pino had been arrested in December, 1948, for
a larceny involving less than $100. He received a
one-year sentence for this offense; however, on January
30, 1950, the sentence was revoked and the case was "placed
on file."
On
January 12, 1953, Pino was released on bail pending
a deportation hearing. Again, he determined to fight,
using the argument that his conviction for the 1948
larceny offense was not a basis for deportation.
After surrendering himself in December, 1953, in
compliance with an Immigration and Naturalization
Service order, he began an additional battle to win
release from custody while his case was being argued.
Adding to these problems was the constant pressure
being exerted upon Pino by O'Keefe from the county
jail in Towanda, Pennsylvania.
In
the deportation fight which lasted more than two
years, Pino won the final victory. His case had gone
to the highest court in the land. On April 11, 1955,
the Supreme Court ruled that Pino's conviction in
1948 for larceny (the sentence which 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.
During
the period in which Pino's deportation troubles were
mounting, O'Keefe completed his sentence at Towanda,
Pennsylvania. Released to McKean County, Pennsylvania,
authorities early in January, 1954, to stand trial
for burglary, larceny, and receiving stolen goods,
O'Keefe also was confronted with a detainer filed
by Massachusetts authorities. The detainer involved
O'Keefe's violation of probation in connection with
a conviction in 1945 for carrying concealed weapons.
Before
his trial in McKean County, he was released on $17,000
bond. While on bond he returned to Boston; and on
January 23, 1954, he appeared in the Boston Municipal
Court on the probation violation charge. When this
case was continued until April 1, 1954, O'Keefe was
released on $1,500 bond. During his brief stay in
Boston, he was observed to contact other members
of the robbery gang. He needed money for his defense
against the charges in McKean County, and it was
obvious that he had developed a bitter attitude toward
a number of his close underworld associates.
Returning
to Pennsylvania in February, 1954, to stand trial,
O'Keefe was found guilty of burglary by the state
court in McKean County on March 4, 1954. An appeal
was promptly noted, and he was released on $15,000
bond.
O'Keefe
immediately returned to Boston to await the results
of the appeal. Within two months of his return, another
member of the gang suffered a legal setback. "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.
TOP OF PAGE
Hatred
and Dissension Increase
Underworld
rumors alleged that Maffie and Henry Baker were "high
on O'Keefe's list" because they had "beaten
him out of" a large amount of money. If Baker
heard these rumors, he did not wait around very long
to see whether they were true. Soon after O'Keefe's
return in March, 1954, Baker and his wife left Boston
on a "vacation."
O'Keefe
paid his "respects" to other members of
the Brink's gang in Boston on several occasions in
the Spring of 1954, and it was obvious to the Special
Agents handling the investigation that he was trying
to solicit money. He was so cold and persistent in
these dealings with his co-conspirators that the
Agents hoped he might be attempting to obtain a large
sum of money--perhaps his share of the Brink's loot.
During
these weeks, O'Keefe renewed his association with
a Boston racketeer who had actively solicited funds
for the defense of O'Keefe and Gusciora in 1950.
Soon the underworld rang with startling news concerning
this pair. It was reported that on May 18, 1954,
O'Keefe and his racketeer associate took Vincent
Costa to a hotel room and held him for several thousand
dollars' ransom. Allegedly, other members of the
Brink's gang arranged for O'Keefe to be paid a small
part of the ransom he demanded, and Costa was released
on May 20, 1954.
Special
Agents subsequently interviewed Costa and his wife,
Pino and his wife, the racketeer, and O'Keefe. All
denied any knowledge of the alleged incident. Nonetheless,
several members of the Brink's gang were visibly
shaken and appeared to be abnormally worried during
the latter part of May and early in June,1954.
Two
weeks of comparative quiet in the gang members' lives
were shattered on June 5, 1954, when an attempt was
made on O'Keefe's life. The Boston underworld rumbled
with reports that an automobile had pulled alongside
O'Keefe's car in Dorchester, Massachusetts, during
the early morning hours of June 5. Apparently suspicious,
O'Keefe crouched low in the front seat of his car
as the would-be assassins fired bullets which pierced
the windshield.
A
second shooting incident occurred on the morning
of June 14, 1954, in Dorchester, Massachusetts, when
O'Keefe and his racketeer friend paid a visit to
Baker. By this time, Baker was suffering from a bad
case of nerves. Allegedly, he pulled a gun on O'Keefe;
several shots were exchanged by the two men, but
none of the bullets found their mark. Baker fled
and the brief meeting adjourned.
A
third attempt on O'Keefe's life was made on June
16, 1954. This incident also took place in Dorchester
and involved the firing of more than 30 shots. O'Keefe
was wounded in the wrist and chest, but again he
managed to escape with his life. Police who arrived
to investigate found a large amount of blood, a man's
shattered wrist watch, and a .45 caliber pistol at
the scene. Five bullets which had missed their mark
were found in a building nearby.
On
June 17, 1954, the Boston police arrested Elmer "Trigger" Burke
and charged him with possession of a machine gun.
Subsequently, this machine gun was identified as
having been used in the attempt on O'Keefe's life.
Burke, a professional killer, allegedly had been
hired by underworld associates of O'Keefe to assassinate
him.
After
being wounded on June 16, O'Keefe disappeared. On
August 1, 1954, he was arrested at Leicester, Massachusetts,
and turned over to the Boston police who held him
for violating probation on a gun-carrying charge.
O'Keefe was sentenced on August 5, 1954, to serve
27 months in prison. As a protective measure, he
was incarcerated in the Hampden County Jail at Springfield,
Massachusetts, rather than the Suffolk County Jail
in Boston.
O'Keefe's
racketeer associate, who allegedly had assisted him
in holding Costa for ransom and was present during
the shooting scrape between O'Keefe and Baker, disappeared
on August 3, 1954. The missing racketeer's automobile
was found near his home; however, his whereabouts
remain a mystery. Underworld figures in Boston have
generally speculated that the racketeer was killed
because of his association with O'Keefe.
Other
members of the robbery gang also were having their
troubles. 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. Faherty had been questioned
on the night of the robbery. He claimed he had been
drinking in various taverns from approximately 5:10
p.m. until 7:45 p.m. Some persons claimed to have
seen him. Continuous investigation, however, had
linked him with the gang.
In
1936 and 1937, Faherty was convicted of armed robbery
violations. He was paroled in the Fall of 1944, and
remained on parole through March, 1954, when "misfortune" befell
him. 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. Seven
months later, however, he was again paroled.
McGinnis
had been arrested at the site of a still in New Hampshire
in February, 1954. Charged with unlawful possession
of liquor distillery equipment and violation of Internal
Revenue laws, he had many headaches during the period
in which O'Keefe was giving so much trouble to the
gang. (McGinnis' trial in March, 1955, on the liquor
charge, resulted in a sentence to 30 days' imprisonment
and a fine of $1,000. In the Fall of 1955, an upper
court overruled the conviction on the grounds that
the search and seizure of the still were illegal.)
Joseph Sylvester Banfield
|
Adolph
Maffie, who had been convicted of income tax violation
in June, 1954, was released from the Federal Corrections
Institution at Danbury, Connecticut, on January 30,
1955. Two days before Maffie's release, another strong
suspect died of natural causes. There were recurring
rumors that this hoodlum, Joseph Sylvester Banfield,
had been "right down there" on the night
of the crime. Banfield had been a close associate
of McGinnis for many years. Although he had been
known to carry a gun, burglary--rather than armed
robbery--was his criminal specialty; and his exceptional
driving skill was an invaluable asset during criminal
getaways.
Like
the others, Banfield had been questioned concerning
his activities on the night of January 17, 1950.
He was not able to provide a specific account, claiming
that he became drunk on New Year's Eve and remained
intoxicated through the entire month of January.
One of his former girl friends who recalled having
seen him on the night of the robbery stated that
he definitely was not drunk.
Even
Pino, whose deportation troubles then were
a heavy burden, was arrested by the Boston police
in
August,
1954. 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 O'Keefe. 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.
As a guard moved to intercept him, Burke started
to run. The door opened, and an armed masked man
wearing a prison guard-type uniform commanded the
guard, "Back up, or I'll blow your brains out." Burke
and the armed man disappeared through the door
and fled in an automobile parked nearby.
An
automobile identified as the car used in the escape
was located near a Boston hospital, and police officers
concealed themselves in the area. On August 29, 1954,
the officers' suspicions were aroused by an automobile
which circled the general vicinity of the abandoned
car on five occasions. This vehicle was traced through
motor vehicle records to Pino. On August 30, he was
taken into custody as a suspicious person. 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. After denying any knowledge of the
escape of "Trigger" Burke, Pino was released.
(Burke was arrested by FBI Agents at Folly Beach,
South Carolina, on August 27, 1955, and returned
to New York to face murder charges which were outstanding
against him there. He subsequently was convicted
and executed.)
TOP OF PAGE
O'Keefe
Confesses
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 Brink's loot. 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 O'Keefe's disgust was reaching the point where
it was possible he would turn against his confederates.
During
an interview with him in the jail in Springfield,
Massachusetts, in October,1954, Special Agents found
that the plight of the missing Boston racketeer was
weighing on O'Keefe's mind. In December, 1954, he
indicated to the Agents that Pino could look for
rough treatment if he (O'Keefe) again was released.
From
his cell in Springfield, O'Keefe wrote bitter letters
to members of the Brink's gang and persisted in his
demands for money. The conviction for burglary in
McKean County, Pennsylvania, still hung over his
head, and legal fees remained to be paid. During
1955, O'Keefe carefully pondered his position. It
appeared to him that he would spend his remaining
days in prison while his co-conspirators would have
many years to enjoy the luxuries of life. Even if
released, he thought, his days were numbered. There
had been three attempts on his life in June, 1954,
and his frustrated assassins undoubtedly were waiting
for him to return to Boston.
Evidently
resigned to long years in prison or a short life
on the outside, O'Keefe grew increasingly bitter
toward his old associates. 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. As long as he
was in prison, he could do no physical harm to his
Boston criminal associates. And the gang felt that
the chances of his "talking" were negligible
because he would be implicated in the Brink's robbery
along with the others.
Two
days after Christmas of 1955, FBI Agents paid another
visit to O'Keefe. After a period of hostility, he
began to display a friendly attitude. 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.
At
4:20 p.m. on January 6, 1956, O'Keefe made the final
decision. He was through with Pino, Baker, McGinnis,
Maffie, and the other Brink's conspirators who had
turned against him. "All right," he told
two FBI Agents, "what do you want to know?"
In
a series of interviews during the succeeding days,
O'Keefe related the full story of the Brink's robbery.
After each interview, FBI Agents worked feverishly
into the night checking all parts of his story which
were subject to verification. Many of the details
had previously been obtained during the intense six-year
investigation. Other information provided by O'Keefe
helped to fill the gaps which still existed.
The
following is a brief account of the data which O'Keefe
provided the Special Agents in January, 1956:
Although basically the "brain child" of Pino, the Brink's robbery
was the product of the combined thought and criminal experience of men who
had known each other for many years. Serious consideration originally had been
given to robbing Brink's in 1947, when Brink's was located on Federal Street
in Boston. At that time, Pino approached O'Keefe and asked if he wanted to
be "in on the score." His close associate, Stanley Gusciora, had
previously been recruited, and O'Keefe agreed to take part. The gang at that
time included all of the participants in the January 17, 1950, robbery except
Henry Baker. Their plan was to enter the Brink's building and take a truck
containing payrolls. Many problems and dangers were involved in such a robbery,
and the plans never crystallized.
In
December, 1948, Brink's moved from Federal Street
to 165 Prince Street in Boston. Almost immediately,
the gang began laying new plans. 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 Brink's offices. Binoculars were
used in this phase of the "casing" operation.
Before
the robbery was carried out, all the participants
were well acquainted with the Brink's premises. Each
of them had surreptitiously entered the premises
on several occasions after the employees had left
for the day. During their forays inside the building,
members of the gang took the lock cylinders from
five doors, including the one opening onto Prince
Street. 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. Then
the lock cylinders were replaced. (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. 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. Pino would take the locks to the man's shop,
and keys would be made for them. This man subsequently
identified locks from doors which the Brink's gang
had entered as being similar to the locks which Pino
had brought him. This man claimed to have no knowledge
of Pino's involvement in the Brink's robbery.)
Each
of the five lock cylinders was taken on a separate
occasion. The removal of the lock cylinder from the
outside door involved the greatest risk of detection.
A passerby might notice that it was missing. Accordingly,
another lock cylinder was installed until the original
one was returned.Inside
the building, the gang members carefully studied
all available information concerning Brink's schedules
and shipments. The "casing" operation was
so thorough that the criminals could determine the
type of activity taking place in the Brink's offices
by observing the lights inside the building, and
they knew the number of personnel on duty at various
hours of the day.
A
few months prior to the robbery, O'Keefe and Gusciora
surreptitiously entered the premises of a protective
alarm company in Boston and obtained a copy of the
protective plans for the Brink's building. After
these plans were reviewed and found to be unhelpful,
O'Keefe and Gusciora returned them in the same manner.
McGinnis previously had discussed sending a man to
the United States Patent Office in Washington, D.C.,
to inspect the patents on the protective alarms used
in the Brink's building.
Considerable
thought was given to every detail. 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. Shortly thereafter--during
the first week of November--a 1949 green Ford stake-body
truck was reported missing by a car dealer in Boston.During
November and December, 1949, the approach to the
Brink's building and the flight over the "getaway" route
were practiced to perfection. The month preceding
January 17, 1950, witnessed approximately a half-dozen
approaches to Brink's. None of these materialized
because the gang did not consider the conditions
to be favorable.
During
these approaches, Costa--equipped with a flashlight
for signalling the other men-- was stationed on the
roof of a tenement building on Prince Street overlooking
Brink's. 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.
The
last "false" approach took place on January
16, 1950--the night before the robbery.
Michael Vincent Geagon
|
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.
Banfield, the driver, was alone in the front. In
the back were Pino, O'Keefe, Baker, Faherty, Maffie,
Gusciora, Michael Vincent Geagan, and Thomas Francis
Richardson.
(Geagan and Richardson, known associates
of other members of the gang, were among the early
suspects. At the time of the Brink's robbery, Geagan
was on parole, having been released from prison in
July, 1943, after serving eight years of a lengthy
sentence for armed robbery and assault. Richardson
had participated with Faherty in an armed robbery
in February, 1934. Sentenced to serve from five to
seven years for this offense, he was released from
prison in September, 1941. 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. Geagan claimed that he spent the evening at
home and did not learn of the Brink's robbery until
the following day. Investigation revealed that Geagan,
a laborer, had not gone to work on January 17 or
18, 1950.)
During
the trip from Roxbury, Pino distributed Navy-type
peacoats and chauffeur's caps to the other seven
men in the rear of the truck. Each man also was given
a pistol and a Halloween-type mask. Each carried
a pair of gloves. O'Keefe wore crepe-soled shoes
to muffle his footsteps; the others wore rubbers.
As
the truck drove past the Brink's offices, the robbers
noted that the lights were out on the Prince Street
side of the building. This was in their favor. After
continuing up the street to the end of the playground
which adjoined the Brink's building, the truck stopped.
All but Pino and Banfield stepped out and proceeded
into the playground to await Costa's signal. (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.)
After
receiving the "go ahead" signal from Costa,
the seven armed men walked to the Prince Street entrance
of Brink's. Using the outside door key they had previously
obtained, the men quickly entered and donned their
masks. The other keys in their possession enabled
them to proceed to the second floor where they took
the five Brink's employees by surprise.
When
the employees were securely bound and gagged, the
robbers began looting the premises. 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. As this bag was being
emptied later that evening, the glasses were discovered
and destroyed by the gang.
The
robbers' carefully planned routine inside Brink's
was interrupted only when the attendant in the adjoining
Brink's garage sounded the buzzer. Before the robbers
could take him prisoner, the garage attendant walked
away. Although the attendant did not suspect that
the robbery was taking place, this incident caused
the criminals to move more swiftly.
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. They had brought
no tools with them, however, and were unsuccessful.
Immediately
upon leaving, the gang loaded the loot into the truck
which was parked on Prince Street near the door.
As the truck sped away with nine members of the gang--and
Costa departed in the stolen Ford sedan--the Brink's
employees worked themselves free and reported the
crime.
Banfield
drove the truck to the house of Maffie's parents
in Roxbury. The loot was quickly unloaded, and Banfield
sped away to hide the truck. (Geagan, who was
on parole at the time, left the truck before it arrived
at the home in Roxbury where the loot was unloaded.
He was certain he would be considered a strong suspect
and wanted to begin establishing an alibi immediately.) While
the others stayed at the house to make a quick count
of the loot, Pino and Faherty departed.
Approximately
one and one-half hours later, Banfield returned with
McGinnis. Prior to this time, McGinnis had been at
his liquor store. He was not with the gang when the
robbery took place.
The
gang members who remained at the house of Maffie's
parents soon dispersed to establish alibis for themselves.
Before they left, however, approximately $380,000
was placed in a coal hamper and removed by Baker
for security reasons. Pino, Richardson, and Costa
each took $20,000, and this was noted on a score
sheet.
Before
removing the remainder of the loot from the house
on January 18, 1950, the gang members attempted to
identify incriminating items. Extensive efforts were
made to detect pencil markings and other notations
on the currency which the criminals thought might
be traceable to Brink's. Even fearing the new bills
might be linked with the crime, McGinnis suggested
a process for "aging" the new money "in
a hurry."
On
the night of January 18, 1950, O'Keefe and Gusciora
received $100,000 each from the robbery loot. They
put the entire $200,000 in the trunk of O'Keefe's
automobile. Subsequently, O'Keefe left his car--and
the $200,000--in a garage on Blue Hill Avenue in
Boston.
During
the period immediately following the Brink's robbery, "the
heat" was on O'Keefe and Gusciora. Thus, when
he and Gusciora were taken into custody by state
authorities during the latter part of January, 1950,
O'Keefe got word to McGinnis to recover his car and
the $200,000 which it contained.
A
few weeks later, O'Keefe retrieved his share of the
loot. It was given to him in a suitcase which was
transferred to his car from an automobile occupied
by McGinnis and Banfield. Later, when he counted
the money, he found that the suitcase contained $98,000.
He had been "short changed" $2,000.
O'Keefe
had no place to keep so large a sum of money. He
told the interviewing Agents that he trusted Maffie
so implicitly that he gave the money to him for safe
keeping. Except for $5,000 which he took before placing
the loot in Maffie's care, O'Keefe angrily stated,
he was never to see his share of the Brink's money
again. While Maffie claimed that part of the money
had been stolen from its hiding place and that the
remainder had been spent in financing O'Keefe's legal
defense in Pennsylvania, other gang members accused
Maffie of "blowing" the money O'Keefe had
entrusted to his care.
O'Keefe
was bitter about a number of matters. First, there
was the money. Then, there was the fact that so much "dead
wood" was included--McGinnis, Banfield, Costa,
and Pino were not in the building when the robbery
took place. O'Keefe 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.
Before
the robbery was committed, the participants had agreed
that if anyone "muffed," he would be "taken
care of." O'Keefe felt that most of the gang
members had "muffed." Talking to the FBI
was his way of "taking care of" them all.
TOP OF PAGE
Arrests
and Indictments
On
January 11, 1956, the United States Attorney at Boston
authorized Special Agents of the FBI to file complaints
charging the 11 criminals with (1) conspiracy to
commit theft of Government property, robbery of Government
property, and bank robbery by force and violence
and by intimidation, (2) committing bank robbery
on January 17, 1950, and committing an assault on
Brink's employees during the taking of the money,
and (3) conspiracy to receive and conceal money in
violation of the Bank Robbery and Theft of Government
Property Statutes. In addition, McGinnis was named
in two other complaints involving the receiving and
concealing of the loot.
Six
members of the gang--Baker, Costa, Geagan, Maffie,
McGinnis, and Pino-- were arrested by FBI Agents
on January 12, 1956. They were held in lieu of bail
which, for each man, amounted to more then $100,000.
Three
of the remaining five gang members were previously
accounted for, O'Keefe and Gusciora being in prison
on other charges and Banfield being dead. Faherty
and Richardson fled to avoid apprehension and subsequently
were placed on the list of the FBI's "Ten Most
Wanted Fugitives." 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. At the time of their arrest,
Faherty and Richardson were rushing for three loaded
revolvers which they had left on a chair in the bathroom
of the apartment. The hideout also was found to contain
more than $5,000 in coins. (The arrests of Faherty
and Richardson also resulted in the indictment of
another Boston hoodlum, as an accessory after the
fact).
As
a cooperative measure, the information gathered by
the FBI in the Brink's investigation was made available
to the District Attorney of Suffolk County, Massachusetts.
On January 13, 1956, the Suffolk County Grand Jury
returned indictments against the 11 members of the
Brink's gang. O'Keefe was the principal witness to
appear before the state grand jurors.
TOP OF PAGE
Part
of the Loot Recovered
Despite
the arrests and indictments in January, 1956, more
than $2,775,000, including $1,218,211.29 in cash,
was still missing. O'Keefe did not know where the
gang members had hidden their shares of the loot--or
where they had disposed of the money if, in fact,
they had disposed of their shares. The other gang
members would not talk.
Early
in June, 1956, however, an unexpected "break" developed.
At approximately 7:30 p.m. on June 3, 1956, an officer
of the Baltimore, Maryland, Police Department was
approached by the operator of an amusement arcade. "I
think a fellow just passed a counterfeit $10.00 bill
on me," he told the officer.
In
examining the bill, a Federal Reserve note, the officer
observed that it was in musty condition. The amusement
arcade operator told the officer that he had followed
the man who passed this $10.00 bill to a nearby tavern.
This man, subsequently identified as a small-time
Boston underworld figure, was located and questioned.
While the officer and amusement arcade operator were
talking to him, the hoodlum reached into his pocket,
quickly withdrew his hand again and covered his hand
with a raincoat he was carrying. Two other Baltimore
police officers who were walking along the street
nearby noted this maneuver. One of these officers
quickly grabbed the criminal's hand, and a large
roll of money fell from it.
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.
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 changer's
possession, he certified that it was not counterfeit.
This
underworld character told the officers that he had
found this money. He claimed there was a large roll
of bills in his hotel room--and that he had found
that money, too. The criminal explained that he was
in the contracting business in Boston and that in
late March or early April, 1956, he stumbled upon
a plastic bag containing this money while he was
working on the foundation of a house.
A
search of the hoodlum's room in a Baltimore hotel
(registered to him under an assumed name) resulted
in the location of $3,780 which the officers took
to police headquarters. At approximately 9:50 p.m.,
the details of this incident were furnished to the
Baltimore Field Office of the FBI. Much of the money
taken from the money changer appeared to have been
stored a long time. The serial numbers of several
of these bills were furnished to the FBI Office in
Baltimore. They were checked against serial numbers
of bills known to have been included in the Brink's
loot, and it was determined that the Boston criminal
possessed part of the money which had been dragged
away by the seven masked gunmen on January 17, 1950.
Of
the $4,822 found in the small-time criminal's possession,
FBI Agents identified $4,635 as money taken by the
Brink's robbers. Interviews with him on June 3 and
4, 1956, disclosed that this 31-year-old hoodlum
had a record of arrests and convictions dating back
to his "teens" and that he had been conditionally
released from a Federal prison camp less than a year
before--having served slightly more than two years
of a three-year sentence for transporting a falsely
made security interstate. At the time of his arrest,
there also was a charge of armed robbery outstanding
against him in Massachusetts.
During
questioning by the FBI, the money changer stated
that he was in business as a mason contractor with
another man on Tremont Street in Boston. 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. Inside
this container were packages of bills which had been
wrapped in plastic and newspapers. "Fat John" announced
that each of the packages contained $5,000. "This
is good money," he said, "but you can't
pass it around here in Boston."
According
to the criminal who was arrested in Baltimore, "Fat
John" subsequently told him that the money was
part of the Brink's loot and offered him $5,000 if
he would "pass" $30,000 of the bills.
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. He arrived in Baltimore on the
morning of June 3 and was picked up by the Baltimore
Police Department that evening.
The
full details of this important development were immediately
furnished to the FBI Office in Boston. "Fat
John" and the business associate of the man
arrested in Baltimore were located and interviewed
on the morning of June 4, 1956. Both denied knowledge
of the loot which had been recovered. That same afternoon
(following the admission that "Fat John" had
produced the money and had described it as proceeds
from the Brink's robbery), a search warrant was executed
in Boston covering the Tremont Street offices occupied
by the three men. The wall partition described by
the Boston criminal was located in "Fat John's" office,
and when the partition was removed, a picnic-type
cooler was found. This cooler contained more than
$57,700, including $51,906 which was identifiable
as part of the Brink's loot.
The
discovery of this money in the Tremont Street offices
resulted in the arrests of both "Fat John" and
the business associate of the criminal who had been
arrested in Baltimore. Both men remained mute following
their arrests. On June 5 and June 7, the Suffolk
County Grand Jury returned indictments against the
three men--charging them with several state offenses
involving their possessing money obtained in the
Brink's robbery. (Following pleas of guilty in November,
1956, "Fat John" received a two-year sentence,
and the other two men were sentenced to serve one
year's imprisonment.)
(After
serving his sentence, "Fat John" resumed
a life of crime. 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 which
had crashed into a truck in Boston.)
The
money inside the cooler which was concealed in the
wall of the Tremont Street office was wrapped in
plastic and newspaper. Three of the newspapers used
to wrap the bills were identified. All had been published
in Boston between December 4, 1955, and February
21, 1956. The FBI also succeeded in locating the
carpenter who had remodeled the offices where the
loot was hidden. 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.
Because
the money in the cooler was in various stages of
decomposition, an accurate count proved most difficult
to make. Some of the bills were in pieces. Others
fell apart as they were handled. 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. 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. In addition
to mold, insect remains also were found on the loot.
Even
with the recovery of this money in Baltimore and
Boston, more than $1,150,000 of currency taken in
the Brink's robbery remained unaccounted for.
"One of the packages of currency
comprising part of the Brink's loot found
in the wall of an office on Tremont Street
in Boston, MA in June 1956"
|
TOP OF PAGE
Death
of Gusciora
The
recovery of part of the loot was a severe blow to
the gang members who still awaited trial in Boston.
Had any particles of evidence been found in the loot
which might directly show that they had handled it?
This was a question which preyed heavily upon their
minds.
In
July, 1956, another significant turn of events took
place. Stanley Gusciora, who had been transferred
to Massachusetts from Pennsylvania to stand trial,
was placed under medical care due to weakness, dizziness,
and vomiting. On the afternoon of July 9, he was
visited by a clergyman. During this visit, Gusciora
got up from his bed, and, in full view of the clergyman,
slipped to the floor, striking his head. Two hours
later he was dead. Examination revealed the cause
of his death to be a brain tumor and acute cerebral
edema.
O'Keefe
and Gusciora had been close friends for many years.
When O'Keefe admitted his part in the Brink's robbery
to FBI Agents in January, 1956, he told of his high
regard for Gusciora. As a Government witness, he
reluctantly would have testified against him. Gusciora
now had passed beyond the reach of all human authority;
and O'Keefe was all the more determined to see that
justice would be done.
TOP OF PAGE
Trial
of Remaining Defendants
With
the death of Gusciora, only eight members of the
Brink's gang remained to be tried. (On January 18,
1956, O'Keefe had pleaded guilty to the armed robbery
of Brink's.) 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.
The defense immediately filed motions which would
delay or prevent the trial. All were denied, and
the impaneling of the jury was begun on August 7.
In
the succeeding two weeks, nearly 1,200 prospective
jurors were eliminated as the defense counsel used
their 262 peremptory challenges. Another week passed--and
approximately 500 more citizens were considered--before
the 14-member jury was assembled.
More
than 100 persons took the stand as witnesses for
the prosecution and the defense during September,
1956. The most important of these, "Specs" O'Keefe,
carefully recited the details of the crime, clearly
spelling out the role played by each of the eight
defendants.
At
10:25 p.m. on October 5, 1956, the jury retired to
weigh the evidence. Three and one-half hours later,
the verdict had been reached. All were guilty.
The
eight men were sentenced by Judge Forte on October
9, 1956, Pino, Costa, Maffie, Geagan, Faherty, Richardson,
and Baker received life sentences for robbery, two-year
sentences for conspiracy to steal, and sentences
of 8 years to 10 years for breaking and entering
at night. McGinnis, who had not been at the scene
on the night of the robbery, received a life sentence
on each of eight indictments which charged him with
being an accessory before the fact in connection
with the Brink's robbery. In addition, McGinnis received
other sentences of two years, two and one-half to
three years, and eight to ten years.
While
action to appeal the convictions was being taken
on their behalf, the eight men were removed to the
State prison at Walpole, Massachusetts. From their
prison cells, they carefully followed the legal maneuvers
aimed at gaining them freedom.
The
record of the state trial covered more than 5,300
pages. It was used by the defense counsel in preparing
a 294-page brief which was presented to the Massachusetts
State Supreme Court. 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.
On
November 16, 1959, the United States Supreme Court
denied a request of the defense counsel for a writ
of certiorari.
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