How was the first bank thief in US history arrested?

The two-banded thief had a perfect money-making plan, but the money-spending plan was a bit lacking in intelligence.

In the late summer of 1798, when the deadly yellow fever swept across Philadelphia, the people left the city but left but there were individuals forced to stay here. So about 1,300 people will die a death even though it will be very fast, but very horrible.

One of the lucky ones to escape Philadelphia was the blacksmith Patrick Lyon and his 19-year-old apprentice. They left the city together on the train to Cape Henlopen. When they reached Lewistown, Delaware (now Lewes), the young apprentice became ill, died two days later.

That's not the only news that Patrick Lyon received. In addition to news of the plague, people have heard of the incredible bank robbery in Philadelphia.

The picture "Pat Lyon at the Forge", its origin will be mentioned at the end of the article.

Someone stole the $ 162,821 from the Pennsylvania Bank safe deposit box, located at the Carpenter's Hall. The theft can only take place on Saturday evening, August 31 or Sunday morning, September 1, 1798.

Patrick Lyon was very interested in this case, not because it was the first bank robbery of money in history, but because before leaving the city because of the disease, he received a contract that could make him involved in the theft. He was the replacement for the two doors of the Pennsylvania Bank .

The money theft was obviously a helping hand, with no sign of any intrusion. Lyon knew well that he was not involved, and immediately suspected the carpenter Samuel Robinson, who had been hired by the bank to oversee the transfer of the headquarters into the Carpenter's Hall. Before the burglary occurred, Robinson also led a stranger to Lyon's blacksmith's shop, when Lyon was conducting the reinforcement of the safe door.

Artwork: a door of a safe box dating back to the 19th century.

Not long after, a friend of Lyon came to Lewistown and through this old friend / landlord, Mr. Lyon knew that he was the number one suspect of the first burglary of the US bank. As soon as two old friends are discussing the robbery, the police have been scouring around to find out the red-haired blacksmith is "hiding".

Patrick Lyon returned to Philadelphia to clarify the case and reported suspicious actions by Samuel Robinson , but before he could do anything, Lyon was arrested. The authorities did not believe the story of Lyon, accusing him of casting a set of extra keys when making the door for the bank. They imprisoned Patrick Lyon, who had traveled from far away to try to clean his name.

Just as Patrick Lyon had predicted, the thief was the stranger who joined Robinson to the smithy to meet him. He is Isaac Davis , a member of the Carpenter Company. He and another co-conspirator - who died a few days after the robbery took place because of the yellow fever epidemic - planned for this bold and neat bank robbery. Davis's accomplice was a banker, Thomas Cunningham, who slept over the Carpenter's Hall on the night of the burglary.

Patrick was the one who changed the lock for the two safe doors of the Pennsylvania Bank.

The two crooks had a perfect thief. But the strict way to handle the number of bad assets they stole was more than 7 . less intelligent, worthy of eternal names on the list of ignorant people: Isaac Davis brought stolen money to send to the bank The goods I stole, to prevent suspicion from people, he divided one part to send it to some other banks, the crime is all right in the city of Philadelphia.

The authorities suspected this number of assets, and while conducting the interrogation, Davis pleaded guilty immediately and pledged to repay the full amount. Local authorities promised to acquitted Isaac Davis. He didn't go to jail any day.

But the blacksmith Patrick Lyon was still imprisoned for crimes, three months in prison, causing Lyon to be skinny, his beard growing full of chin, his friends leaving him."I read books until I was tired, walked around the cell until I was tired , " from the book Lyon wrote when he was released. The book is named " The Story from Patrick Lyon who suffered three months of miserable imprisonment in Philadelphia jail because of the dubious doubts related to the theft of money from Pennsylvania Bank along with the subsequent events" , The feeling that the title is the emotion in prison by Patrick Lyon: long.

Prison of Wallnut Street, where Patrick Lyon was detained for 3 months.

The process of his release from prison is also not easy, so the book he wrote has attracted much attention. The most talented lawyers of the time faced each other in a lawsuit between Patrick Lyon and the authorities.

According to the book "The name is too long to ask for permission , " as soon as it was reported that the bank was stolen, Lyon took a boat and walked a distance of 240 km to report it. Isaac Davis's carefully thought-out action was extremely suspicious, and Lyon was convinced that people would believe him and investigate the case. But Supreme Governor John Haines quickly accused Patrick Lyon of receiving a $ 2,000 reward.

"I was in the hands of individuals who were obviously not smart," Lyon wrote bitterly. The judge imprisoned Lyon, setting a bail rate of $ 150,000. After Davis confessed, the typhoon took Lyon down to $ 2,000. He was removed by the highest judge in early January 1799.

Davis confessed, but Patrick still had three months of imprisonment.

From the book written by Lyon, the lawsuit was formed, with all superstar lawyers on both sides. The attorney of the plaintiff deeply deliberated on the party who had committed malicious actions, trying to imprison Mr. Lyon."Instead of freeing Lyon and apologizing for what he did, they enforced his sentence - not for the crime of robbery but as an accomplice , " lawyer Joseph Hopkinson, one of the names. the brightest in the law field in the US at that time.

After a long period of consideration, the jury declared a compensation of $ 12,000 for Mr. Patrick Lyon. The party was asked to review the case in March 1807, before the trial took place, the two sides agreed to reimburse the compensation to $ 9,000.

That is still a small amount. Patrick Lyon spent the rest of his life in surplus. He hired the famous painter John Neagle to paint himself a portrait, named "Pat Lyon at the Forge" . The picture is currently hanging at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.

At that time, only people with money hired artists to portray themselves, and they would represent the most glamorous beautiful clothes. Patrick Lyon was not like that, he wore a cloth apron, a hammer handle, ready to hit the anvil in front of him. A picture says many things.