'Great Train Robber' Ronnie Biggs dies aged 84
- 11 years ago
A carpenter by trade, criminal turned celebrity Ronnie Biggs has died at the age of 84.
In the summer of 63, the cash-strapped youth joined a gang that stopped a Royal Mail night train, and made off with over two million pounds in what became known as the Great Train Robbery.
The haul was the equivalent of around 40 million pounds (47 million euros) today.
Sentenced to 30 years behind bars, Biggs managed to escape in 1965 and spent years on the run, living mostly in Brazil.
There he flaunted his freedom, regularly giving interviews to British newspapers and revelling in his notoriety.
Ronnie Biggs always said he never regretted his role in one of the world’s biggest robbery’s and even recorded a punk song with the Sex Pistols called, ‘No One is Innocent’.
In 2001, ailing and broke Biggs finally surrendered to British police and returned to prison but was freed in 2009 on health grounds.
Biggs was last seen in public in August at a memorial service at London’s Highgate Cemetery for Bruce Reynolds, the mastermind of the robbery, who died aged 81 in February.
Frail and using a wheelchair, Biggs was unable to talk after a series of strokes.
In the summer of 63, the cash-strapped youth joined a gang that stopped a Royal Mail night train, and made off with over two million pounds in what became known as the Great Train Robbery.
The haul was the equivalent of around 40 million pounds (47 million euros) today.
Sentenced to 30 years behind bars, Biggs managed to escape in 1965 and spent years on the run, living mostly in Brazil.
There he flaunted his freedom, regularly giving interviews to British newspapers and revelling in his notoriety.
Ronnie Biggs always said he never regretted his role in one of the world’s biggest robbery’s and even recorded a punk song with the Sex Pistols called, ‘No One is Innocent’.
In 2001, ailing and broke Biggs finally surrendered to British police and returned to prison but was freed in 2009 on health grounds.
Biggs was last seen in public in August at a memorial service at London’s Highgate Cemetery for Bruce Reynolds, the mastermind of the robbery, who died aged 81 in February.
Frail and using a wheelchair, Biggs was unable to talk after a series of strokes.