How America’s Biggest Heist, the Great Brinks Robbery, Fell Apart

There are a few simple requirements for a crime to be considered perfect. It must be pulled off without any hiccups; it must pay off in some big way; and it must be untraceable, leaving the authorities puzzled about the whodunnit.

The Great Brinks Robbery of 1950 met all of these requirements—a great pile of cash disappeared with no evidence, leads, or suspects. Yet, it only amounted to a near perfect crime. The masterminds failed in one often overlooked aspect of the plan that has taken down many criminal comrades before and since: group morale.

The 11 local thieves who banded together to rob the Brinks headquarters in Boston on January 17, 1950, were six days—six days—away from getting off scot free with what amounted to over $30 million in today’s currency. Then, one member of the group began to feel that he had been unfairly treated, and decided to bring the entire criminal enterprise tumbling down.

Read more at The Daily Beast.