Do you ever daydream about how you could get enough money to never have to worry about money again? Winning the lottery and getting away with robbing a bank are two of the most common fantasies that people have about getting rich. Of course, most people learn to live frugally and don’t ever experience either of these things. Nevertheless, there are a few people who do win the lottery and a handful of people who make their money by robbing banks.

Let’s take a look at 20 of the most shocking bank robberies in history:

1. Guards Steal $300 Million from Baghdad Bank. Also in 2007, guards working at the Dar Es Salaam bank in Baghdad stole $300 million from the bank during their overnight shift. This is just the most shocking of many bank robberies that have taken place in Iraq since the U.S. invasion of the country.
2. Saddam Hussein Steals $1 Billion from Iraq’s Central Bank. Iraq had troubles even before the U.S. invasion. It is believed that personal assistants of Saddam Hussein looted the Iraq Central Bank in the days leading up to the U.S. invasion and stole approximately $1 billion.
3. Bank Robber Wins Lottery. This case is shocking because of the pure and simple fact that a bank robber managed to actually win a million dollar lottery. Back in 2007, Timothy Elliott won one million dollars on a scratcher lottery ticket. However, he was on probation for robbing not one but two banks. A rule of his probation was “no gambling” and playing the lottery is gambling so this winner didn’t end up winning anything after all!
4. Northern Bank Robbery of 2004. The Northern Ireland Peace Process was thrown into crisis in 2004 when a gang stole £26.5 million in pounds sterling from the headquarters of the Northern Bank. This was one of the biggest bank robberies in the history of the UK.
5. United California Bank Robbery of 1972. Professional burglars broke into this California bank in 1972 and managed to pull off one of the biggest bank robberies of that time stealing about $30 million. They would have gotten away with it except that they had also committed a similar bank robbery in another state and were caught for that one.
6. Butch Cassidy’s 1889 Bank Robbery. This criminal managed to steal a lot of money during his career. It was his 1889 bank robbery that really stood out, though. He managed to make off with $20,o00 – a real fortune during that time!
7. Loomis Fargo Bank Robbery of 1997. Sometimes it’s just too tempting for the workers at banks to keep their hands off of the money. In this case, an armored truck driver teamed up with the vault supervisor and over one dozen other people to pull off a bank robbery totally over $17 million. They didn’t succeed, though, and most of the money was recovered.
8. Dunbar Armored Car Robbery of 1997. The same year as the Loomis Fargo Bank Robbery, there was this bank robbery. It was also committed by insiders – the regional safety inspector for the armored car depot and some cohorts. They made off with over $18 million, the largest actual cash robbery in the United States to date.
9. Largest Bank Heist in Pakistan. In 2009 the guards at a Pakistan bank helped lead a robbery that resulted in nearly $4 million stolen, the biggest bank heist in the history of the country. What’s really shocking is that the bank that was robbed sits less than 100 metres from city police headquarters and yet the criminals got away.
10. 1992 Bank of France Robbery. Yet another inside job, a bank employee teamed up with robbers to steal approximately $30 million and a bank van. They were a rough group; threatening the bank’s guard by holding his family hostage and strapping explosives to him so that he would cooperate. The criminals were eventually caught but the money was not recovered.
11. Manual Delgado’s $20,000 Police Shootout. This criminal stole $20,000 from a U.S. bank back in 1980.What makes this robbery stand out though is that it involved a police chase and a shootout which resulted in damage to over 30 different police cars before the criminal was caught.
12. Nigeria’s Largest Bank Heist. You don’t think of Nigeria as a country with so much money in its banks that thefts would be common, do you? However, a robbery is worthwhile to some criminals here. In 2001, $320,000 was stolen from the Lagos Branch of the Diamond Bank. It was one of a series of robberies that all happened around the same time.
13. John Dillinger in the 1930’s. The shocking thing about this criminal mastermind was the sheer number of bank robberies that he managed to pull off. In addition to this, he was known for pulling off his robberies in unique ways – posing as a seller of bank alarm systems and even as a film crew “pretending” to rob the place for a movie!
14. Bowman and Kirkpatrick. A more modern duo who robbed many banks, they did their work in the late 1980’s. They are believed to have robbed nearly thirty banks and gotten about $7 million. This includes $4.5 million taken during an infamous heist in Washington where they entered the bank in trench coats and demanded the cash on hand. They were both eventually caught for other offenses and charged with these crimes.
15. Stanley Mark Rifkin’s Ultimate Heist. Imagine robbing a bank without ever touching any of the money. That’s what this man managed to pull off, stealing over $10 million through wire transfers. And he did it back in 1978! The bank didn’t even know they had been robbed until the FBI told them!
16. South American Tunneling Bank Robbers of 2006. In 2006 there were a series of bank robbers who tunneled into banks, stole money and got away. Two of the biggest thefts were a $68 million theft from a bank in Fortaleza, Brazil and a theft of somewhere between $25 million and $70 million from a Buenos Aires bank.
17. Baker Street Bank Robbery of 1971. Tunneling into banks isn’t a new idea. It was done in 1971 in London by unknown robbers who managed to steal millions of pounds of cash and jewels. The specific amount stolen is unclear since the robbers were never caught.
18. German Army Steals $520 million. During World War II, the German army plowed through various regions and stole the goods out of their banks. It is estimated that they stole over five hundred million dollars worth of gold and artwork. Most of the treasures were ultimately returned to their rightful countries but it took about fifty years to make those reparations.
19. Palestinian Guerrilla Groups Rob British Bank of the Middle East. In 1976 members of the PLO broke into a church located next to the British Bank of the Middle East went through the wall and managed to get away with somewhere between $20 million and $50 million.
20. America’s First Bank Robbery. Americans have been robbing banks since they first formed a country. The first known bank robbery in American history was the theft of $162,821 (a large sum at that time) from the banks of Philadelphia way back in 1798. Believe it or not, even this first robbery was an inside job!

From – http://www.promotionalcodes.org.uk/12616/20-of-historys-most-shocking-bank-robberies/ - Thanks Kathy.

No Comments

Simple Privacy Settings for Facebook

No Comments

You used to be a special place
for all my college friends.
A sanctuary in cyberspace,
but every love story ends.
(Facebooooook…..)
Why’d you have to go and lose
your exclusivity?
Now all my nightmares have come true…
my mom just friended me!

Since she joined she spends all her time
checking my news feed.
My interests are no longer
bubble butts and sticky weed.
She whacked my ass on Mafia Wars
and Flixtered “You’ve Got Mail.”
She washed the colors with the whites
and posted “laundry fail” (’cause now)…

CHORUS
My mom’s on Facebook.
She found a new way to nag me.
My mom’s on Facebook.
Comments whenever friends tag me.
My mom’s on Facebook.
She only got it to stalk me.
My mom’s on Facebook.
My childhood photos cock-block me.

My wall is not for e-mail, mom,
you’ll never get it right.
And gifting me some sexy lips
don’t mean a kiss goodnight.
She keeps on adding all my friends,
they just think she’s a joke…
except for Steve who says that she’s
a mom he’d like to poke. (She’s a M.I.L.P.!)

Mama read my 25 Things
and each and every note.
Now she knows I lost a bet
and had to wax my scrote.
Suggests new pages every day
from “hugs” to “Will and Grace.”
It’s getting to the point I’ll have to
switch back to MySpace. (But not really!)

Wrote in my status,
“boss is keeping me at work.”
Mom responded, “now I see
why you told me he’s a jerk.”
My boss saw it and fired me
and mom’s the reason why.
Now I’m starving and I’m lonely
and I’m probably gonna die… (because)

CHORUS
My mom’s on Facebook.
Now I’ve gotta watch every word.
My mom’s on Facebook.
Oooh, goddamn you, Mark Zuckerburg.
My mom’s on Facebook.
Posted a public reminder…
My mom’s on Facebook.
…that I came out her vagina!

My mom’s on Facebook.
Invited me to my cousin’s communion.
My mom’s on Facebook.
It’s like a family reunion.
My mom’s on Facebook.
I’m trying not to be bitter…
My mom’s on Facebook.
…but she just found me on Twitter!

My mom, your mom, his mom, Steve’s mom… all moms!
They’re all on Facebook.

No Comments

Palaces of democracy are everywhere today

As millions of Britons converge on the local primary school or village hall to cast their votes, former polling clerk Tom de Castella explains what you can and can’t do in a polling station.

At 0700 BST on Thursday, schools and village halls across the land morphed into palaces of democracy.

A general election is a special event in the life of the nation. And Nigel Tonkin, Westminster Council’s head of administrative services, who has been organising elections in London for 35 years, says that first-time voters shouldn’t be intimidated.

“Don’t be put off by something that’s unknown. The staff will be welcoming and try to make the process as straightforward as possible.”

But voting is a serious business. So just what can and can’t you do in a polling station?

Dogs may not yet be entitled to vote but they are allowed to come and watch as long as they don’t disrupt the vote. According to previous guidance issued by the Electoral Commission, dogs must be in an “accompanying” role rather than “free-range”.

In cases where a voter has two or more dogs and will struggle to control them while casting their ballot, polling station staff may hold the dogs’ leads. Rural constituencies might have cases of voters riding to the polling station. In such cases, horses and ponies should be tethered up outside. There is no guidance on other animals such as rabbits, ferrets or pot-bellied pigs, so any decision will be at the discretion of presiding officers.

“We wouldn’t want people coming in with overt political clothing,” says Mr Tonkin. However it is all about context. “There’s a candidate standing in Westminster as a pirate. And if he comes in to vote in a pirate costume as is likely, we won’t turn him away. The same goes for any supporters coming to vote as pirates.”

But if there were Labour or Tory voters dressed in party T-shirts and hats that would be a different matter, he says.

“If you’re wearing party insignia and emblems we wouldn’t like that.”

Pyjamas are banned at Tesco, but OK for voting

So what about people coming in wearing T-shirts of the left-wing firebrand Che Guevara? Surely, these are political, too?

“Che Guevara isn’t a problem. Unless, of course, he was standing in the ward,” he says. It all boils down to one simple rule.

“It’s about not intimidating voters about who they should support.”

Recently a branch of Tesco banned customers from shopping in pyjamas. Would polling staff take a similar hard line against inappropriate clothing?

“Pyjamas are fine, provided they’re not indecent. And so is a builder who’s stripped to the waist. We want people to vote, we don’t want to turn people away,” he says. But a line does have to be drawn somewhere, he says. “A topless woman wouldn’t be appropriate as voters might get distracted.”

No. British democracy works on the basis of a secret ballot. For that reason the media are banned from filming, taking photographs or reporting from inside the polling station. The same applies to individuals. Don’t be tempted to take a picture – you’ll be asked to delete it and told not to do it again.

Yes. It’s true that polling station staff are on the lookout for people trying to vote twice by impersonating someone else on the register. But Rob Connelly, head of electoral services in Birmingham City Council, says that there’s no requirement for voters to show their face. “If you can’t see someone’s face we can ask them the statutory questions – things like their name and address. We wouldn’t stop someone voting if they’re wearing a hoodie or a burka.”

Yes. Polling station staff cannot refuse a voter simply because they are drunk or under the influence of drugs. However, if the presiding officer suspects you are incapable of voting you will be asked a series of questions to determine whether you are up to the task of casting your ballot. If the voter cannot answer satisfactorily they will be told to come back when they’ve sobered up.

No. The only people permitted to wear a rosette are the candidates and their polling agents. The rosette must be plain and not refer to the candidate or bear a slogan. Neither can they be too big.

While the Electoral Commission doesn’t specify dimensions at this election, previous guidance set out a maximum width of “three to four inches”. It seems the authorities are worried that a really big rosette might cause people to change their minds about whom to vote for.

No. Political discussion is banned inside the polling station. Polling station staff will intervene if people are heard to be discussing the merits of different candidates or parties – it may unsettle other voters. Neither can one ask someone whom they are voting for as this will compromise the secrecy of the poll. If you want to debate the pros and cons of a certain candidate you must do so outside. Neither can people distribute party leaflets or other literature in the polling station. Anyone seen doing so will be asked to take them outside.

This depends on whether you’re a minor or major royal. “The Queen lives in the constituency of Westminster but she isn’t on our electoral register,” Mr Tonkin says. “As head of state, she is part of the institution of Parliament so cannot vote.” The same applies to close family members like Prince Charles and his sons. But “minor” royals not so closely related to the Queen may be able to vote.

Not if it disrupts other people. Those trying to bring in a ghetto blaster will be turned away. And if you are listening to music on headphones you’ll need to remove them when addressed by polling station staff. They will want to confirm your name and other details.

If your personal music player is playing at high volume in the polling booth you’ll be asked to turn it down or leave. “We don’t want people blasting music around the place as it would be disruptive,” Mr Tonkin says. The same attitude goes for loud conversations on mobile phones.

No, the election is not being electronically counted. So if you prefer you can use a pen. You can even mark the box with a tick instead. The important thing is that your voting intention is clear.

Yes, providing you haven’t already posted your ballot paper in the box. Return to the desk and tell staff what has happened. They’ll be able to cancel your ballot paper and issue you with a new one.

You’re welcome to enter the polling station with a friend, says Connelly. But voting is a private matter so you must be alone when you go into the polling booth and mark a cross on the ballot paper. If you have any questions about the procedure, polling station staff will be happy to help.

If on the other hand, you have a disability, or are illiterate, and are unable to vote on your own, the presiding officer can help. A family member or friend could be permitted to accompany and assist.

Of course. Guidance to polling station staff asks them to be welcoming to under 18s so as not to put off the voters of tomorrow. However, in exceptional cases where there are large numbers of young people in the station, presiding officers have the power to ask them to wait outside. If someone has several young children, a member of the polling station staff can look after them while the parent or guardian votes.

A child is not allowed to write the X for the adult. If they’re seen doing so, the ballot paper would be confiscated before it could be put in the box. It would be down to the presiding officer over whether they could cast another ballot.

A student website has been debating how to make a protest against the parties by spoiling one’s ballot paper. Possible messages include “[Expletive] the system!” and “No suitable candidate”.

Any written messages will make the ballot paper void

These kind of deliberately spoiled ballots are part of the British political tradition, are termed “rejected votes” and are included in the overall turnout. However, those wishing to vote for one of the candidates should avoid writing comments. It may confuse the counters and lead to your vote being put in the rejected pile. And however wise or witty a comment, it’s unlikely to make much impression on staff who will be frantically trying to count ballot papers.

People do occasionally sign their ballots but these votes do not count. They are considered rejected ballots because the voter has revealed their identity and breached the rules of a secret ballot.

Signing your ballot paper was fairly common in the 19th Century when candidates would pay people to vote for them. Under that corrupt system it was possible for the candidate to check up later who had voted for them by looking for signatures, and pay out accordingly. Today, however innocent the motive, a signature renders a ballot “rejected”.

With thousands of polling stations dotted across the country, general elections are a huge logistical undertaking. And when something does goes wrong, the event can bring out the British tradition of adapting to circumstances and making the best of a bad job.

We got to the polling station, only to find the store of ballot papers had been thrown out by the cleaners the night before Nigel Tonkin, Westminster Council

“A few years ago there was a fire in one of our polling stations,” recalls Mr Connelly. “We had to evacuate everyone and move everything out. So we opened the station from the back of a car. You get the boot open and hope it’s not raining.”

Mr Tonkin agrees that the car is an essential part of an election supremo’s armoury. “One year the school caretaker didn’t open up on time so we had to start a polling station in the back of a car.” You never know when disaster might strike so it’s all about reacting quickly, he says.

“Another time we got to the polling station, only to find the store of ballot papers had been thrown out by the cleaners the night before. We had to hurriedly send out for replacements.”



No Comments