The Great American Bank Robbery

Sperry's exhaustive research reveals the economic costs of high-risk subprime mortgages and a host of other dangerous multicultural trends that have derailed the American economy.

King of Heists is a spellbinding and unprecedented account of the greatest bank robbery in American history, which took place on October 27, 1878, when thieves broke into the Manhattan Savings Institution and stole nearly $3 million in cash and securities—around $50 million in today's terms. Bringing the notorious Gilded Age to life in a thrilling narrative, J. North Conway tells the story of those who plotted and carried out this infamous robbery, how they did it, and how they were tracked down and captured. The robbery was planned to the minutest detail by criminal mastermind George Leonidas Leslie—a society architect and ladies' man whose double life as the nation's most prolific bank robber led him to be dubbed the “King of the Bank Robbers.” The New York Times proclaimed the 1878 heist “the most sensational in the history of bank robberies in this country.” An absorbing tale of greed, sex, crime, betrayal, and murder, King of Heists blends all the richness of history with the thrills of the best fiction.

No crime is as synonymous with America as bank robbery. Though the number of bank robberies nationwide has declined, bank robbery continues to captivate the public and jeopardize the safety of banks and their employees. In A History of Heists, Jerry Clark and Ed Palattella explore how bank robbers have influenced American culture as much as they have reflected it. Jesse James, Butch Cassidy, Bonnie and Clyde, John Dillinger, Willie Sutton, and Patty Hearst are among the most famous figures in the history of crime in the United States. Jesse James used his training as a Confederate guerrilla to make bank robbery a political act. John Dillinger capitalized on the public’s scorn of banks during the Great Depression and became America’s first Public Enemy Number One. When she held up a bank with the leftist Symbionese Liberation Army, Patty Hearst fueled the country’s social unrest. Jerry Clark and Ed Palattella delve into the backgrounds and motivations of the robbers, and explore how they are as complex as the nation whose banks they have plundered. But as much as the story of bank robbery in America focuses on the thieves, it is also a story of those who investigate the heists. As bank robbers became more sophisticated, so did the police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and other law enforcement agencies. This captivating history showshow bank robbery shaped the modern FBI, and how it continues to cultivate America’s fascination with the noble outlaw: bandits seen, rightly or wrongly, as battling unjust authority.

This Here's a Stick Up covers the history of bank robbing in America, from the days of the old West gunslingers like Jesse James and the Dalton Gang, to the infamous bank robbers of the Great Depression (Dillinger, Bonnie & Clyde, Baby Face Nelson) to the infamous Stopwatch Gang, who ripped off a series of Los Angeles banks wearing masks of U.S. presidents. (Their exploits were portrayed in the Keanu Reeves moviePoint Break). From the first heister to scribble a demand note to the first cyber criminal to pull off a heist using a laptop and a modem, this book will have it all, and then some. Author Duane Swierczynski will be utilizing information culled from actual FBI files from the 1930s up until today. Additional chapters will include a rundown of the 100 biggest hauls in bank robbing history; another chapter will feature what you should do if you find yourself in a bank that's being robbed; still another chapter will chronicle the 25 oddest bank robberies in history. The book will be written in a breezy, irreverent, and often humorous style and will have much in common with such bestsellers as The World's Dumbest Criminals and The Worst Case Scenario books.

5 young men. 32 destroyed police vehicles. 1 spectacular bank robbery. This “cinematic” true crime story transports readers to the scene of one of the most shocking bank heists in U.S. history—a crime that’s almost too wild to be real (The New York Times Book Review). Norco ’80 tells the story of how five heavily armed young men—led by an apocalyptic born–again Christian—attempted a bank robbery that turned into one of the most violent criminal events in U.S. history, forever changing the face of American law enforcement. Part action thriller and part courtroom drama, this Edgar Award finalist for Best Fact Crime transports the reader back to the Southern California of the 1970s, an era of predatory evangelical gurus, doomsday predictions, megachurches, and soaring crime rates, with the threat of nuclear obliteration looming over it all. In this riveting true story, a group of landscapers transforms into a murderous gang of bank robbers armed to the teeth with military–grade weapons. Their desperate getaway turns the surrounding towns into war zones. And when it’s over, three are dead and close to twenty wounded; a police helicopter has been forced down from the sky, and thirty–two police vehicles have been completely demolished by thousands of rounds of ammo. The resulting trial shakes the community to the core, raising many issues that continue to plague society today: from the epidemic of post–traumatic stress disorder within law enforcement to religious extremism and the militarization of local police forces.

From Onjali Q. Rauf, acclaimed author of The Boy At the Back of the Class, come two poignant tales of modern-day heroism, featuring supermarket theives, a visit with the Queen, and plenty of laughs! Ten-year old Ahmet, once known as the "Boy at the Back of the Class", became the Most Famous Refugee Boy in the World when he and his friends stood up for refugee children like him all over Britain. But they're just getting started! THE DAY WE MET THE QUEEN Ahmet and his friends have been invited to tea—by none other than the Queen of England herself! But when their journey is unexpectedly interrupted by an old enemy, it will take some quick thinking and an ingenious plan to make it to the palace—and the queen—on time. THE GREAT FOOD BANK HEIST On Thursdays, Nelson, Ashley and Mum head out to the food bank. With its shining cans and boxes of food stacked from floor to ceiling, Nelson thinks it’s the best kind of bank there is. But there’s a thief in town, and the shelves of the food bank are getting emptier each day. One thing is for certain: someone has to put a stop to the robberies. And Nelson and his friends plan to do just that, with a daring supermarket stake-out that's sure to catch the Food Bank Theives—if they don't get found out first! In this two-novella collection, discover kid heroes making a difference in the world, featuring old friends and some new classmates you won't want to leave.