# So they finally caught the people who set up that pizza guy who robbed a bank **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 4, 2008, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640 "2008-12-04T05:16:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ChrisBooth12](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@ChrisBooth12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChrisBooth12)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/1 "2008-12-04T05:16:23Z")
This is the first I have heard any of this updated story [http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,24749716-23109,00.html](http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,24749716-23109,00.html) I have seen it discussed a few times here but must have not seen the thread regarding the girl. Anyways I thought it was interesting. I think it is amazing how good our investigaters are sometime. On a sidenote any updates on the possible zodiac killer down in Fresno? ---
**Author:** ![Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a9a28c/32.png) [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oslo_Ostragoth)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 6:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/2 "2008-12-04T06:32:01Z")
Wait - that was real? I think I saw that on a fictional TV show. ---
**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 4, 2008, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/3 "2008-12-04T09:02:44Z")
> [@Oslo\_Ostragoth](#): > > Wait - that was real? I think I saw that on a fictional TV show. Quite possible; they’ve been known to base their stories on real life. For example, I recall that CSI based an episode on a real person who drove into someone who ended up halfway through the windshield but not dead, drove home, and left the victim there in the garage for days to die. They did change some details though. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 9:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/4 "2008-12-04T09:57:33Z")
It was most definitely real, albeit _like_ something from a TV show. I always wondered what the whole story was, now it kind of makes sense. The police considered him a suspect, but why would he have let himself die? Article says he was in on it until he found out the bomb was real. They then forced him at gunpoint to go thru with it. Felt bad for the guy, and even knowing the above I still kind of do. Such a twisted thing to do to somebody. Plus I saw the unedited footage of it blowing up and killing him (on liveleak). Not especially graphic (shot from far away), but very creepy and unsettling. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 11:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/5 "2008-12-04T11:54:57Z")
Bringing this over to MPSIMS. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/6 "2008-12-04T12:58:57Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Quite possible; they’ve been known to base their stories on real life. For example, I recall that CSI based an episode on a real person who drove into someone who ended up halfway through the windshield but not dead, drove home, and left the victim there in the garage for days to die. They did change some details though. I know they did a L&O “ripped from the headlines” story on that; I never saw the CSI one. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/7 "2008-12-04T12:59:18Z")
> [@Der\_Trihs](#): > > Quite possible; they’ve been known to base their stories on real life. For example, I recall that CSI based an episode on a real person who drove into someone who ended up halfway through the windshield but not dead, drove home, and left the victim there in the garage for days to die. They did change some details though. There’s also been a movie based on that. (I hate those promos for _Law and Order_ saying that an episode is “ripped from the headlines”. Why the hell do people want to see a slightly ficitionalized version of a recent news story?) ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/8 "2008-12-04T13:15:14Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > Why the hell do people want to see a slightly ficitionalized version of a recent news story?) To be fair, the stories on L&O only use the headline as a starting point. The final outcome is usually nothing like the real story. ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Neighbor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hi_neighbor/32/494_2.png) [@Hi\_Neighbor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Neighbor)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/9 "2008-12-04T13:21:10Z")
> [@](#): > > The story of Wells was used as a basis for the pilot episode of 2006 series _Heist_, and was also used as the basis for “Pas de Deux”, an episode of _Law & Order: Criminal Intent_. Literary references to the crime include a mention in Dean Koontz’s 2006 fictional thriller novel _The Husband_. This scenario could have easily been in a \*Saw \*movie or something. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/10 "2008-12-04T13:59:24Z")
> [@Baldwin](#): > > There’s also been a movie based on that. (I hate those promos for _Law and Order_ saying that an episode is “ripped from the headlines”. Why the hell do people want to see a slightly ficitionalized version of a recent news story?) Yeah, it’s called [Stuck](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0758786/), of all things. Not very tasteful, but the lead is played by Mena Suvari and I wouldn’t mind seeing it. The only thing though, is that as usual the Hollywood take on the real life events aren’t even roughly close to the same. ☹ Regarding the OP; the agony of that poor man in the collar was one of the most horrific things I’ve witnessed. I hope they all rot in prison so that some measure of justice is served on his behalf. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/11 "2008-12-04T14:02:20Z")
> [@faithfool](#): > > Regarding the OP; the agony of that poor man in the collar was one of the most horrific things I’ve witnessed. I hope they all rot in prison so that some measure of justice is served on his behalf. You know that he was in on it, right? ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/12 "2008-12-04T14:09:45Z")
I’ve read that in some places, but in those instances, that information had always come from the people that were eventually convicted. Since they didn’t strike me as too honest to begin with, I thought it was prudent to take their word with a grain of salt. Had it been proven otherwise? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/13 "2008-12-04T14:14:43Z")
> [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](#): > > You know that he was in on it, right? Not really. He thought it was a fake bomb. When he found out it was real, they had to put the collar on him at gunpoint. * * * I’m surprised that this was only 5 years ago - it seems like it happened in the '80s. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/14 "2008-12-04T15:00:32Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > I always wondered what the whole story was, now it kind of makes sense. The police considered him a suspect, but why would he have let himself die? Article says he was in on it until he found out the bomb was real. They then forced him at gunpoint to go thru with it. Obligatory [Wiki article](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Douglas_Wells). ---
**Author:** ![Hi\_Neighbor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hi_neighbor/32/494_2.png) [@Hi\_Neighbor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hi_Neighbor)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/15 "2008-12-04T15:37:15Z")
If he was \*really \*in on it, they would have just used a fake bomb. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/16 "2008-12-04T15:53:52Z")
> [@Hi\_Neighbor](#): > > If he was \*really \*in on it, they would have just used a fake bomb. According to this [AP article](http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-07-10-1549751336_x.htm): > [@](#): > > RIE, Pa. — A pizza deliveryman who robbed a bank and was then blown up by a bomb locked around his neck helped plan the robbery and then got caught up in something “much more sinister,” a federal prosecutor said Wednesday. > > \ > > Wells’ brother John was visibly outraged after prosecutors held a news conference saying his brother was in on the plot. > > “Where is the evidence? There is no evidence. You cannot link a man when there is no evidence,” John Wells said, his voice trembling with anger. “When he was accosted at gunpoint, taken from his job, that’s not a co-conspirator.” > > “Brian did not put that collar on himself,” John Wells said. He also accused investigators of not doing their jobs and said “the truth will come out.” > > The indictments say Diehl-Armstrong and Barnes contrived a series of notes to make Wells appear to be “merely a hostage,” with the plan being to get the money from Wells in a way that if he was caught, he could claim he was an unwilling participant. According to the indictments, they locked a live bomb onto Well’s neck to ensure he turned over the money. > > “If he died, he could not be a witness,” authorities said in the indictment. > > \ ---
**Author:** ![Furious\_Marmot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dfb087/32.png) [@Furious\_Marmot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Furious_Marmot)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2008, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/17 "2008-12-04T19:06:32Z")
This crime occurred towards the very end of my pizza delivery career, maybe just after. At the time it was unclear if the driver was involved, though I guess that hasn’t changed. What struck me and my coworkers, aside from the depravity of the crime, was the way the news handled it. The tone of their voices, the way the story was presented, was more appropriate to a ‘escaped boa constrictor found in washing machine’ story. It was quite hideous to think that it could be one of us sitting there waiting to die, while the plastic-faced newsreaders treated the whole thing with less gravitas than a puppy run over by a drunk driver. That, and the thought that across America, people were leering at their TV, impatient to see a working man be murdered in grisly fashion, like a canned tiger hunt. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2011, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/18 "2011-08-05T19:12:31Z")
A [CNN.com](http://CNN.com) update on the case: [New details revealed in 'pizza collar bomb' heist - CNN.com](http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/05/pizza.bomb/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2011, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/19 "2011-08-05T20:26:34Z")
[But now, hilarity ensues!](http://www.30minutesorless.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2011, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640/20 "2011-08-06T04:11:20Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > A [CNN.com](http://CNN.com) update on the case: [http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/05/pizza.bomb/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/05/pizza.bomb/index.html) What’s the update part? What new stuff did they learn? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-they-finally-caught-the-people-who-set-up-that-pizza-guy-who-robbed-a-bank/475640.md?page=2)