Wanted: Gentleman bank robber
May 5, 2011 4:03 AM   Subscribe

Crime Magazine features a rather matter-of-fact account of one of Leslie Ibsen Rogge's (wiki) bank robberies. The article is an excerpt from a new book by Dane Batty, Rogge's nephew, called Wanted: Gentleman bank robber: The True Story of Leslie Ibsen Rogge, One of the FBI’s Most Elusive Criminals. Rogge was once on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, and is apparently the first from that list brought in due to the Internet. He is due to be released in 2047.
posted by Harald74 (9 comments total) 7 users marked this as a favorite
 
This just pisses me off. "Leslie Ibsen Rogge robbed over 30 banks in nearly two decades and took in over $2 million without ever hurting anybody." Riiiight. All of the bank employees at those more than 30 banks who received a credible threat to their lives delivered in calm tones? Yeah, wouldn't faze me, either. The loss of the actual swag plus all of the higher insurance/security costs being passed on to bank clientele? Nah, doesn't hurt at all.

(and nope, don't like pirates, the mob or pimps, either. fucking parasites.)
posted by likeso at 4:35 AM on May 5, 2011 [4 favorites]


Great story, by gum the similarity between this and westlake's (fictional) thief, Parker are incredible.
posted by smoke at 4:35 AM on May 5, 2011


I find the topic of bank robberies interesting. I love a good bank robbery movie. But my mom works at a financial institution. Luckily she's never been present for a robbery, but her coworkers have. Even when it all goes down smoothly (i.e. just a note passed, no violence), there is post-traumatic stress for those tellers. So while I might read his book, I reserve the right to pre-judge him as a scumbag.
posted by Brodiggitty at 4:57 AM on May 5, 2011 [1 favorite]


I used to know a woman who was a bank teller. She was present for robberies at two different banks. At the second one, the police were much more interested in establishing her as an accomplice than treating her as a victim. The bank owner eventually found out and told the police to stop harassing his staff. She was a really strong individual, but the whole thing really traumatized her. She eventually found other work where she didn't have to worry so much about having guns pointed at her. So, yeah, no sympathy from me for this guy.
posted by GenjiandProust at 6:57 AM on May 5, 2011


That's nothing, most bankers can steal way more then 2 million just by signing a few papers.
posted by The Whelk at 9:30 AM on May 5, 2011 [2 favorites]


"He is due to be released in 2047"

He's going to be 107 when he gets out!!
posted by milkwood at 11:59 AM on May 5, 2011


I thought the article was quite interesting, especially the planning stage. Now, I realize that most robbers don't plan much, but these guys did.

I just for the record, I don't buy into the "gentleman" part of the description here.
posted by Harald74 at 12:05 AM on May 6, 2011


Harald74, it occurs to me that my comment contained grar... but I don't wish it aimed at you personally. It's that convention of romaticising criminals that gets my back right up - particularly when accompanied by patently absurd claims that the crimes committed were "victimless".

Anyway, here is a link to an article in Wired on Gerald Blanchard. It's a fascinating read about an ingenious masterthief (well, a "masterthief" who did eventually get caught). No humans seem to have been either harmed or threatened in the course of his career. And you want planning? This is planning!
posted by likeso at 8:50 AM on May 7, 2011


romanticising

*sigh*
posted by likeso at 8:54 AM on May 7, 2011


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