# Bank robber reveals crime to world, is somehow arrested. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 6, 2012, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244 "2012-12-06T22:44:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/1 "2012-12-06T22:44:32Z")
Long story short: 19 year old robs bank. Posts YouTube video bragging about it. Gets arrested. Now, [news reports](http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2012/12/03/nebraska-teen-bank-robber-made-video/1744451/) don’t outright SAY that the video was the only, or even primary, reason for the arrest, but it’s sure fun to think it is, isn’t it? I also have no idea what she was thinking. Perhaps she figured that it’d be buried in the millions upon millions of videos posted every day? If so, she has a point, but then why post publicly at all? Mind boggled. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/2 "2012-12-06T23:15:55Z")
Some people just…don’t think the internet occupies the same reality as, well, reality. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/3 "2012-12-06T23:20:53Z")
Hey, just because OTHER criminals got caught because they posted their exploits online doesn’t mean that SHE would get caught. Because she’s special and all. ---
**Author:** ![Vita\_Beata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@Vita\_Beata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vita_Beata)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/4 "2012-12-06T23:27:48Z")
Quote from the link: Sabata claimed she is a “victim of the government” because state officials took away her baby and charged her with neglect. She sounds a bit removed from reality … but was able to rob $6000 from a bank? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2012, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/5 "2012-12-06T23:55:26Z")
> [@Vita\_Beata](#): > > She sounds a bit removed from reality .. but was able to rob $6000 from a bank? :eek: Modern bank robbers tend to be pretty near the bottom of the criminal barrel. Incompetent, stupid, taking large risks for a small gain. My biggest surprise is that it’s a woman; as a rule committing crimes and boasting about it afterwards is typically a male error not a female one. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/6 "2012-12-07T00:34:38Z")
I saw this story yesterday, and I’m too lazy at the moment to look up a link, but the person who turned her in was apparently her _ex-husband_. She allegedly sent the video to him and asked him if he wanted to go with her to get a new tattoo with her new riches. She really is brilliant, this one. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/7 "2012-12-07T02:56:53Z")
> [@Vita\_Beata](#): > > She sounds a bit removed from reality .. but was able to rob $6000 from a bank? :eek: All it takes to rob a bank is to walk and ask for the money. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/8 "2012-12-07T04:39:47Z")
> [@Vita\_Beata](#): > > She sounds a bit removed from reality .. but was able to rob $6000 from a bank? :eek: Robbing a bank is actually pretty easy. Their employees are instructed not to resist any robberies. The problem is that it’s a really stupid crime. Banks don’t actually keep a lot of cash on hand - six thousand dollars is actually a pretty high amount. But banks do have really good security procedures. So a bank robber is committed a crime with relatively meager gains combined with a good chance of getting arrested. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/9 "2012-12-07T05:03:07Z")
This makes me think of one of my favorite “stupid bank robber” stories. I recall that maybe 25 years ago, a Danish man robbed a bank back in his homeland. He mad off with a large amount, eventually arrived in Thailand, fell in love with a bargirl in Pattaya and gave her the money for safekeeping. (You can see where this is going, I’m sure. :D) She promptly disappeared with the loot. Now broke and unable to keep moving, Interpol finally caught up with him and took him away. The girl and money were never seen again that I ever heard of. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/10 "2012-12-07T05:08:44Z")
> [@Vita\_Beata](#): > > Quote from the link: Sabata claimed she is a “victim of the government” because state officials took away her baby and charged her with neglect. So this sounds like the whole escapade (including making the video and posting it) was maybe all a big defiant protest maneuver. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/11 "2012-12-07T05:22:19Z")
It’s impossible to rob a bank. The pens are chained down. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/12 "2012-12-07T05:51:34Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > My biggest surprise is that it’s a woman; as a rule committing crimes and boasting about it afterwards is typically a male error not a female one. We’ve come a long way, baby. Now we can be just as stupid and risk-taking as men! ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/13 "2012-12-07T07:39:27Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > The problem is that it’s a really stupid crime. Banks don’t actually keep a lot of cash on hand - six thousand dollars is actually a pretty high amount. Having been married to someone who worked at a major bank as a teller and in other capacities for several years, I don’t think the amount of cash on hand you reference here is remotely accurate. But maybe you’re referencing the amount that each teller has in his or her drawer at any given moment. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/14 "2012-12-07T16:33:25Z")
> [@Asimovian](#): > > Having been married to someone who worked at a major bank as a teller and in other capacities for several years, I don’t think the amount of cash on hand you reference here is remotely accurate. But maybe you’re referencing the amount that each teller has in his or her drawer at any given moment. I’m talking about the amount on hand that robbers actually manage to steal. The fact that there may be more money somewhere in the building doesn’t matter if it isn’t accessible. I found various figures for how much the average bank robber gets from his crime: $9,386 in 2008. $14,374 in 2009. [cite](http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/2009/04/new-bank-robbery-stats-show-lu.html/) $5000 [cite](http://voices.yahoo.com/bank-robbery-criminal-law-93809.html?cat=17) $4,330 in 2006. $7,500 in 2010. [cite](http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2012/06/11/what-you-should-know-before-robbing-a-bank) just over $4,000 [cite](http://www.popcenter.org/problems/robbery_banks/print/) $1,000 [cite](http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=3432084#.UMIXtuTWK_s) As for the chances of getting caught: \*“Bank robbery has about as high a clearance rate as murder. About three quarters of all bank robbers are caught. Usually more. By comparison, some property crimes in Dallas have single-digit arrest percentages.” \*[cite](http://crimeblog.dallasnews.com/2009/04/new-bank-robbery-stats-show-lu.html/) _“Many would say that committing a bank robbery is about the dumbest mistake that a criminal can make. With the technological advances made in the security industry, it is extremely difficult to commit a bank robbery and get away with it. In fact, the Uniform Crime Reporting Program says that more than 50% of all bank robbers are either caught at the scene of the crime or are later identified and arrested from security camera footage.”_ [cite](http://voices.yahoo.com/bank-robbery-criminal-law-93809.html?cat=17) _“Bank robbery has among the highest arrest rate of any crime in the country — 59 percent of bank robberies were solved last year, said Sparks. To compare, about a quarter of the total number of robbery cases nationwide were closed in 2005, and only 12 percent of burglary cases were closed that year.”_ [cite](http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=3432084#.UMIXtuTWK_s) _“The likelihood of catching a bank robber on or near the scene is higher than for other crimes. This is because most bank robberies are reported very quickly, most occur during daylight hours, many have multiple witnesses, and some produce photographic images that can be used to canvass the surrounding area for suspects. Consequently, many robbers are caught the same day. In fact, the clearance rate for bank robbery is among the highest of all crimes—nearly 60 percent.”_ [cite](http://www.popcenter.org/problems/robbery_banks/print/) So while there are disagreements about the exact figures, there is a consensus that the risk-to-reward ratio is against the bank robber. As one source puts it [Only An Idiot Would Rob a Bank](http://thebillfold.com/2012/05/only-an-idiot-would-rob-bank-inflation/). ---
**Author:** ![Fool\_in\_the\_Rain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8491ac/32.png) [@Fool\_in\_the\_Rain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fool_in_the_Rain)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/15 "2012-12-07T17:06:51Z")
Hello, Darwin? Yea, we think we found a winner!" ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/16 "2012-12-07T17:08:22Z")
I read in our local paper the other day that someone attempted to rob one of our local banks and had the dye pack explode on him, and he left the money at the door on his way out. My first thought was “Bank robbery, here?” and then “Bank robbery, in 2012?” ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/17 "2012-12-07T17:59:03Z")
I love the slideshow of her being made to do the perp walk and being assisted into the rear seat of a patrol vehicle. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/18 "2012-12-07T18:06:56Z")
> [@Fool\_in\_the\_Rain](#): > > Hello, Darwin? Yea, we think we found a winner!" She already procreated. Darwin loses. ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2012, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bank-robber-reveals-crime-to-world-is-somehow-arrested/643244/19 "2012-12-07T18:20:32Z")
I just noticed that this was in York, NE. It has a population of less than eight thousand. It’s likely that there were people in the bank that knew her by name.