The first criminal trial without a jury to take place in England and Wales in more than 400 years begins tomorrow. [more inside]
posted by jonesor on Jan 11, 2010 - 52 comments

Bank Notes - a collection of bank robbery notes, successful and otherwise.
posted by nthdegx on Nov 2, 2009 - 64 comments

Unmasking D.B. Cooper: On a rainy night in 1971, the notorious skyjacker jumped out of a 727 and into American legend. But a chance lead to a Manhattan P.I. may have finally cracked the case, despite the fact this isn't the first time someone has claimed to be D.B. Cooper.
posted by fandango_matt on Oct 31, 2007 - 27 comments

Airway Robbery. Another summer, another disaster for British Airways. The company has just received the largest fine ever issued by Britain’s competition agency (nearly £270m / $547m) for price fixing on fuel surcharges. BA admitted to colluding with rival airline Virgin Atlantic (who won immunity in the UK) on at least six occasions. The allegations are thought to be linked to the resignation of commercial director Martin George and communications chief Iain Burns. Although BA said fuel surcharges were "a legitimate way of recovering costs", in May 2007 it put aside £350 million for legal fees and fines. Criminal proceedings against individuals in both countries are a distinct possibility.
posted by chuckdarwin on Aug 1, 2007 - 19 comments

Gun crime on the streets of London? It's not new. Here's a tale of robbery, murder, revolution, and Churchill in a topper. First, the Tottenham Outrage, a factory robbery resulting in two murders, 27 injuries, and a bizarre chase. The villains are Latvian anarchists, a group who are trying to finance their revolutionary aims through crime. The next year, a plan to tunnel into a jewelers is botched, and attempted burglary becomes the Houndsditch Murders . The police investigate, and on locating the gang, The Siege of Sidney Street begins. The army is called in, and the Home Secretary pops by and assumes control. After much shooting, a fire breaks out, and two men burn to death. But neither of them is the mysterious gang leader, Peter the Painter, and the five later tried are all acquitted. Churchill, however, is guilty of showing off a bit.
posted by liquidindian on Jun 18, 2007 - 19 comments

"It's not the robbery that separates the amateur from the professional. It's the way you deal with the money afterwards." A fascinating analysis of the Tonbridge heist.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium on Feb 26, 2006 - 20 comments

This was not a lucky crime, this was a well-organised crime A gang stole at least £20m ($40 m) in cash from a Belfast bank yesterday. Many suspect the involvement of one of the paramilitary organizations which collectively made off with over £43m during 22,000 armed robberies during the Troubles using the tiger kidnap. Only one problem: most of the cash was in Northern Irish notes. Which sometimes are not even accepted in the rest of the UK.
posted by fshgrl on Dec 22, 2004 - 22 comments

Robbers escape with $3m (£2.1m) in cash after hijacking a van at Heathrow Airport, London, the second such raid there in recent weeks. Nice to see that security has improved then, at the worlds busiest airport after 9/11. via BBC
posted by MintSauce on Mar 19, 2002 - 12 comments