The North End neighborhood in Boston is well-known for its historical sites. It played a major part in the American Revolution with stories like Paul Revere’s ride, captured the danger of a city that might be growing too fast in the industrial era with the 1919 Great Molasses Flood, and more. One piece of North End History that captivated the Boston public but might not get as much attention as the items listed above is the Great Brinks Robbery.

A Daring Unsolved Crime

The Brinks Armored Car Company used to process any money they were handling at their North End headquarters. This caught the attention of Tony Pino, a small-time crook, who devised a way to break in and get keys made for each of the locked doors leading to the office. After more than a year of carefully studying the layout of the building and getting a team together, Pino was ready to put his plan into action.

On January 17, 1950, a gang of thieves dressed as Brinks guards ambushed 5 employees in the counting room at the Brinks Armored Car Depot in the North End. They bound and gagged the employees and completely cleared out everything in less than 35 minutes. All in all they made off with $2.7 million and the Great Brinks Robbery became one of the largest armed robberies in US history.

The Perfect Crime

A cap and line of rope were the only things left at the scene of the crime. On top of that, no one had even been hurt which made it even more difficult for the police to find anyone who could help find who committed the crime. It made headlines across the country and for six years tips would come in but the cops had nothing substantial to work with.

The criminals probably would have gotten away with it too, if not for Joseph “Specs” O’Keefe.

Specs skipped town after the Great Brinks Robbery and left his money with another one of the thieves. It wasn’t long before Specs ended up getting arrested in Pennsylvania but when he came back to collect his share he found that it had already been spent. Now the gang of thieves saw Specs as a liability and hired a hit man to take him out which failed and only made things worse.

The Robbers Get Turned In

After the attempt on O’Keefe failed, Specs decided to turn into a state’s witness days before the statute of limitations ran out on the crime and turned everyone in. A trial was held and eight of the gang members received life sentences in prison. Specs pleaded guilty and received four years.