Gang des postiches
Encyclopedia
The Gang des postiches was a famous team of bank robbers
that operated in Paris
between 1981 and 1986. With a rare boldness, they attacked about thirty banks.
They would enter the bank dressed in common clothing and wearing false mustaches, beard
s, and wig
s (from which they got their name). After entering the bank, they would separate into two groups, the first responsible for taking hostages, while the second took their time taking cash from the bank's vault.
's history.
On January 14, 1986, the device was triggered, summoning the BRB
(Banditry Repression Brigade) and the BRI
(Research and Intervention Brigade) around the Credit Lyonnais
branch on 39, rue du Docteur-Blanche, in the 16th arrondissement, and this time it was effective. Police discreetly surrounded the bank, knowing that the gang was inside, to stop them when they come out. Unfortunately when they came out the situation devolved into chaos, owing to the reckless action of the head of the BRB, Raymond Mertz. In the ensuing shootout, one of the gangsters, Bruno Berliner, and a police officer, Jean Vrindts, were killed. In addition, there were 3 policemen wounded. Some of the robbers managed to escape. The fiasco revealed serious drifts originating from the police headquarters at the 36 quai des Orfèvres.
While the policemen blamed the BRB director for the blunder, he was protected and cleared. This situation led to an unseen protest and demonstration at the 36 quai des Orfèvres. In retaliation, the police hierarchy used the services of the IGS (Police Services General Inspection - the "police of police") to break up the protest. Later, Mertz was even promoted deputy director of the Paris police
. In the meantime, a BRI officer, Dominique Loiseau, was accused of being a spy within the police. He was tried and convicted for it, but serious doubts remained among some about the facts. After almost 7 years in prison, he was pardoned by François Mitterrand
in 1993.
That story inspired Olivier Marchal
for his film 36 Quai des Orfèvres
.
Jean-Claude Myszka, André Bellaïche, and Patrick Geay were arrested in December 1986 in a villa in Yerres
after almost a year on the run.
Of the previous members of the Gang des postiches:
admitted that he acquired his fortune from the Gang des postiches when he recovered the gold bricks they stole during the 1980s from where they were hidden in cemeteries, upon his release from prison.
Bank robbery
Bank robbery is the crime of stealing from a bank during opening hours. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program, robbery is "the taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of...
that operated in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
between 1981 and 1986. With a rare boldness, they attacked about thirty banks.
They would enter the bank dressed in common clothing and wearing false mustaches, beard
Beard
A beard is the collection of hair that grows on the chin, cheeks and neck of human beings. Usually, only pubescent or adult males are able to grow beards. However, women with hirsutism may develop a beard...
s, and wig
Wig
A wig is a head of hair made from horsehair, human hair, wool, feathers, yak hair, buffalo hair, or synthetic materials which is worn on the head for fashion or various other aesthetic and stylistic reasons, including cultural and religious observance. The word wig is short for periwig and first...
s (from which they got their name). After entering the bank, they would separate into two groups, the first responsible for taking hostages, while the second took their time taking cash from the bank's vault.
Organisation
It is known that the group consisted of a core group of 5 or 6 members from eastern Paris, but there were other loose members as well. They gathered to commit a series of hold-ups, even several in the same day, then separated for a while, sometimes went abroad, before they would start again. This bank robbery team was considered one of the best in FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
's history.
The media
Amidst the robberies, and in the absence of any leads for the investigators, journalists treated the robbers as almost heroes, being respectful to their hostages and not making any victim. The robbers addressed the bank patrons and benefited from a strong sympathy among ordinary people, who smiled more than they were bothered when they heard that the Gang des postiches had struck again. They even spoke once of following a leftist guerilla ideology, which was clearly erroneous.The final chapter
The police and the government eventually lost their patience with the ease with which the Gang des postiches operated and their mythification by the press. All the resources were deployed to combat them. The police developed an anti-wig device in Paris bank branches. This system was far from effective, but the gang felt the pressure rising around them. They became more cautious, more nervous and less courteous with the hostages.On January 14, 1986, the device was triggered, summoning the BRB
Brigade de répression du banditisme
The Brigade de Répression du Banditisme of Paris is an elite special police unit of the French Ministry of the Interior . It is in charge of armed robberies, burglaries and scams, and art thefts...
(Banditry Repression Brigade) and the BRI
Brigade de recherche et d'intervention
The Brigades de Recherche et d'Intervention , often called "Anti-Gang Brigades", are elite police specials units of the French Ministry of the Interior ....
(Research and Intervention Brigade) around the Credit Lyonnais
LCL
LCL can mean:* Labor Contract Law, a 2008 Chinese law intended to protect workers* Lateral collateral ligament, a ligament found on the outside apect of the knee* Lazarus Component Library, the Lazarus GUI subsystem, similar to Borland VCL...
branch on 39, rue du Docteur-Blanche, in the 16th arrondissement, and this time it was effective. Police discreetly surrounded the bank, knowing that the gang was inside, to stop them when they come out. Unfortunately when they came out the situation devolved into chaos, owing to the reckless action of the head of the BRB, Raymond Mertz. In the ensuing shootout, one of the gangsters, Bruno Berliner, and a police officer, Jean Vrindts, were killed. In addition, there were 3 policemen wounded. Some of the robbers managed to escape. The fiasco revealed serious drifts originating from the police headquarters at the 36 quai des Orfèvres.
While the policemen blamed the BRB director for the blunder, he was protected and cleared. This situation led to an unseen protest and demonstration at the 36 quai des Orfèvres. In retaliation, the police hierarchy used the services of the IGS (Police Services General Inspection - the "police of police") to break up the protest. Later, Mertz was even promoted deputy director of the Paris police
Direction Régionale de Police Judiciaire de Paris
The Direction Régionale de Police Judiciaire de Paris , often called the 36, quai des Orfèvres or simply the 36 by the address of its headquarters, is the division of the Police judiciaire in Paris...
. In the meantime, a BRI officer, Dominique Loiseau, was accused of being a spy within the police. He was tried and convicted for it, but serious doubts remained among some about the facts. After almost 7 years in prison, he was pardoned by François Mitterrand
François Mitterrand
François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand was the 21st President of the French Republic and ex officio Co-Prince of Andorra, serving from 1981 until 1995. He is the longest-serving President of France and, as leader of the Socialist Party, the only figure from the left so far elected President...
in 1993.
That story inspired Olivier Marchal
Olivier Marchal
Olivier Marchal is a French actor, director, screenwriter, and a former policeman. In 2005, he was nominated for three César Awards , for his film 36 Quai des Orfèvres....
for his film 36 Quai des Orfèvres
36 Quai des Orfèvres (film)
36 Quai des Orfèvres is a 2004 French film directed by Olivier Marchal and starring Daniel Auteuil and Gérard Depardieu. The film takes place in Paris, where two cops are competing for the vacant seat of Chief of Police while involved in a search for a gang of violent thieves...
.
Jean-Claude Myszka, André Bellaïche, and Patrick Geay were arrested in December 1986 in a villa in Yerres
Yerres
Yerres is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.Inhabitants are called Yerrois.-Geography:Yerres lies in the North-Eastern part of Essonne and bordering the Val-de-Marne...
after almost a year on the run.
Of the previous members of the Gang des postiches:
- Jean-Claude Myszka committed suicide in 2003.
- André Bellaïche was freed and runs a record store in Paris on rue Mouffetard.
- Patrick Geay is still incarcerated. He denies his affiliation with the gang. On October 31, 2006, he was sentenced to 17 years imprisonment by the EssonneEssonneEssonne is a French department in the region of Île-de-France. It is named after the Essonne River.It was formed on 1 January 1968 when Seine-et-Oise was split into smaller departments.- History :...
Court of Appeals, which found him guilty of 5 robberies and an accomplice in the attempted murder of a police officer. - Robert Marguery lives in ThailandThailandThailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
.
The return of the Gang des postiches
In 2004, the case of the Gang des postiches resurfaced when the serial killer Michel FourniretMichel Fourniret
Michel Fourniret is a convicted French serial killer who confessed, in June and July 2004, to kidnapping, raping and murdering 9 girls in a span of 14 years during the 1980s, the 1990s and the 2000s. He was also accused of 10 additional murders, nine in France and one in Belgium, and was found...
admitted that he acquired his fortune from the Gang des postiches when he recovered the gold bricks they stole during the 1980s from where they were hidden in cemeteries, upon his release from prison.
In popular culture
- Le Dernier Gang a movie by Ariel ZeitounAriel ZeitounAriel Zeitoun is a French director, producer, and screenwriter.Ariel Zeitoun started as a producer in 1979 with L'école est finie...
starring Vincent ElbazVincent ElbazVincent Elbaz is a French actor. He has appeared in many French television shows and movies.His first major role was in the 1994 movie Le péril jeune.Elbaz received the 1998 Jean Gabin Prize.-Filmography:...
, Gilles LelloucheGilles LelloucheGilles Lellouche is a French actor. He started his career as a director before changing to acting. Lellouche has appeared in more than thirty films since 1995. He was nominated twice for a César Award...
, Sami BouajilaSami BouajilaSami Bouajila is a French award-winning actor of Tunisian origin.Bouajila's grandfather was a Berber born in Tripoli, Libya and immigrated to Tunisia. Bouajila's father decided to immigrate to France in 1956. Sami was born and grew up in Échirolles, a suburb south of Grenoble...
, Clémence PoésyClémence PoésyClémence Poésy is a French actress and fashion model. Since starting on the stage as a child, Poésy had dramatic education, and has been active on both film and television since 1999, including some English-language productions...
, Pascal ElbéPascal ElbéPascal Elbé is a French actor and director and screenwriter.-Biography:Pascal Elbe was born in Colmar, Haut-Rhin, France, to a family of middle-class Jewish immigrants from Algeria. He was raised in Strasbourg...
.
See also
- Les Postiches, un gang des années 80, par Patricia Tourancheau, Fayard.
- Un flic innocent en prison, l'histoire vraie qui a inspiré le film 36, quai des orfèvres par Dominique Loiseau et Michel Naudy, Bernard Pascuito éditeur.
- Ma vie sans postiche par André Bellaïche, Editions First.