1978 Murwillumbah bank robbery

Robbery in Australia March 2026 March 2026 The 1978 Murwillumbah bank robbery was a bank robbery that took place on 22 November 1978. It is believed that a group known as the Magnetic Drill Gang stole just over 1.7 million yes (equivalent to AU 1978 2million in AU) in that robbery, from the Bank of New South Wales, now Westpac, in Murwillumbah, New South Wales.Australian Crimes - AustralianCrimes.com https://australiancrimes.com/crimes/magneticdrillgang.html 2026-03-13 australiancrimes.com8 December 1978 $1.7m insurance paid http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110927990 16 March 2026 The Canberra Times Australian Capital Territory, Australia 7 National Library of Australia 53 15,783 The robbery is considered to be the biggest bank robbery in Australian history, and the money was never recovered.Chenery Susan 2022-01-07 'They got the lot': the mystery of the biggest bank heist in Australia's history https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/jan/08/they-got-the-lot-the-mystery-of-the-biggest-bank-heist-in-australias-history 2026-03-13 The Guardian en-GB 0261-3077The bank job https://museum.tweed.nsw.gov.au/explore/people-places/tweed-tales-tall-true/the-bank-job 2026-03-13 Tweed Regional Museum en-AU Events On the evening of 22 November 1978, thieves broke through the rear doors of the Bank of New South Wales and then, using a medical cystoscope and other specialised equipment, broke into the Chubb safe and took its entire contents. Their signature tool was an electromagnetic diamond-tipped drill.2018-11-22 What happened to the cash in historic Murwillumbah bank robbery? https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-11-23/murwillumbah-remembers-magnetic-drill-gang-bank-robbery/10519858 2026-03-13 ABC News en-AU The process of breaking into the safe took several hours and, after taking its contents, the thieves jammed the safe shut. Much of the money in the safe had only arrived that day, in an armoured Transurety Australia van, guarded by five security officers.Willoughby Max 2017-04-01 The big bank job http://www.murwillumbahhistoricalsociety.org.au/timelines/201704%20Final.pdf Timelines: The Quarterly Newsletter of the Murwillumbah Historical Society 5 4 6–7 During the robbery, local people did not see or hear anything unusual. The Magnetic Drill Gang The robbery is believed to have been committed by the Magnetic Drill Gang, who had already stolen approximately $1 million in at least nine robberies in Sydney and Melbourne using the same tools, namely the diamond-tipped drill, and a circular electro-magnet holding it in place. All of these robberies had been from Chubb safes and the gang is believed to have honed their skills with these on a safe door they had stolen in Melbourne in 1976. Aftermath The robbery was not discovered until 7:30am the next day (23 November 1978) when a patrolling security officer noticed that the rear door was open. It then took bank staff, police, Chubb safe experts and finally local council workers nine hours, until 4:30pm, to open the safe and confirm that its contents had been stolen. The safe was finally opened by the council workers, led by the Tweed Shire engineer, who used jackhammers and sledgehammers to cut a hole in the external wall of the bank and its reinforced concrete. The police officer, Chief Inspector Frank Charleton, was the first to enter the safe is said to have stated "they got the lot". This slogan became directly associated with this bank robbery and was replicated on t-shirts, beer glasses, tea towels and other goods sold around Australia and the world. thumb|The former Bank of New South Wales and location of the Murwillumbah bank robbery, vacant as at March 2026The money within the vault was primarily in untraceable notes as the bank branch served as a major point of receipt for old notes being sent on to the Reserve Bank of Australia. Much of the money stolen had been received by the bank the day before and had been collected from banks throughout the region. Although two men were sought for questioning for the crime, and facial composites were prepared, they were never located and no one was charged for the crime.29 November 1978 Holden panel van near scene of robbery http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110926178 16 March 2026 The Canberra Times Australian Capital Territory, Australia 11 National Library of Australia 53 15,774 This was despite a $250,000 reward on offer. Many believe it was an "inside job" as otherwise the thieves would probably not have known about the amount of cash the bank was holding that night. Police, security officers and the armoured truck staff were all suggested as possible perpetrators.25 November 1978 Insurance firms to pay $ 1.76m http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110925339 16 March 2026 The Canberra Times Australian Capital Territory, Australia 3 National Library of Australia 53 15,770 Also in 1979, some of the money stolen from Murwillumbah was cashed in at a bank in Hong Kong which then became the centre of an investigation trying to establish how much of money had been laundered through there.7 December 1979 Bank-haul find in Hong Kong http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110972197 16 March 2026 The Canberra Times Australian Capital Territory, Australia 10 National Library of Australia 54 16,144 Since the robbery it has been alleged that Graham Kinniburgh, a safe cracker, was involved in the crime. However, in 2021 Robert Bertram “Bertie” Kidd, who has since died, claimed to have planned the robbery but to have been unable to attend on the night, as he was "unexpectedly detained in prison"; many do not believe this claim as all information shared by Kidd was well known. In popular culture Murwillumbah soon gained notoriety for the crime and the t-shirts, and much of the merchandise created, was made by local man Peter Moore who owned the local menswear store. The t-shirts showed a 'ocker type' man, with a beer belly and hairy legs with the words "they got the lot" across the top and, to keep up with demand, Moore worked 18 hours a day screen-printing them.Johnansen Ron Herb Moore - men's store Tales of our times Murwillumbah Print Spot Murwillumbah, NSW 2002 10 73-74 It is believed that Ronnie Biggs, who helped plan and execute the Great Train Robbery of 1963, ordered three shirts while on the run in Rio de Janeiro. A year later Moore released a follow up version "enjoying the lot" showing the same man relaxing under a palm tree. In 1979, the Bullamakankas included the robbery as being part of the inspiration for the single "Murwillumbah Bank Job". Part of the lyrics of this song are: And now the bank job in Murwillumbah it shouldn't be like that They took two million dollars and they put it on the map And they had the bank vault covered they knew just what to do They came, they saw, they conquered and then they all shot through Bullamankanka "Murwillumbah Bank Job" 1979 See also Banks List of bank robbers and robberies Timeline of major crimes in Australia Crime in Australia Murwillumbah Swamp Beer References Category:1978 crimes in Australia Category:Bank robberies Category:Robberies in Australia Category:Murwillumbah