The “Other” Great St. Louis Bank Robbery

Where is the stolen $847,000? This is a piece of Missouri history that still is not solved. On October 23rd, 1992, nearly $1,000,000 was stolen from a bank in St. Louis. Neither the money, nor the robbers, have been found yet. Even though it happened in a busy building in the middle of downtown St. Louis, police never generated solid leads on the case. Here is the backstory of the “Other” Great St. Louis Bank Robbery.

The Historic Day:

The robbery happened on a typical October afternoon in downtown St. Louis. It was one of those rare days in late October in Missouri where the temperature jumped up to 82-degrees, so many people were out enjoying the final warm days of the year. The Cardinals had finished their season two weeks prior. The team failed to reach the playoffs, but fans were still taking pictures around Busch Memorial Stadium. A couple of blocks to the northeast, more people were enjoying the view of the St. Louis Arch and riverfront. But right in between those two iconic structures, the United Missouri Bank at Market Street and Broadway was about to go into the history books.

The Heist:

It happened just after 3:30pm that Friday afternoon as construction crews were finishing up some work on the building. A man named Clyde Blakey, who worked for Brinks, made the normal pick up at the bank to transport the money a few blocks north to the Federal Reserve Bank. The driver of the Brinks truck remained outside in the truck waiting for Blakey to return. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary – just a final stop before the weekend.

Blakey was pushing the money through a basement hallway of the Equitable high-rise building (the building that now has KPMG and Greensfelder signs) when two men wearing stocking masks and white overalls approached him with guns drawn. The men spoke only in whispers as they tied up Blakey. The two then took off walking with the money. It took Blakey about 30 minutes to get himself untied, and that’s when the search for the bank robbers began in earnest.

The Investigation:

Not much evidence was found immediately. None of the construction workers noticed anything unusual. The driver stayed in the truck the whole time and Blakey was cleared as a suspect. But two hours after the robbery, a janitor on the 13th floor of the building found tape, pantyhose, jumpsuits, and about $1,000 in cash in a bathroom. That was about all the evidence that would ever be found in the case.

Police later speculated that the robbers took the cash from the basement to the 13th floor, where they changed clothes. They then went back down to the third floor and walked outside. It’s believed they walked across the pedestrian bridge that connected with the parking garages near the stadium. And from there, the rest is a mystery.

Adjusted for inflation, this would be worth about $1.8 million in today’s dollars.

The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery from 1953

Here is the story of the “original” robbery that was made into a movie starring Missourian Steve McQueen.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Great_St._Louis_Bank_Robbery