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Study Does the Math: Robbing Banks Doesn't Pay

US bank heists return an average of $4K a person

By Mark Russell,  Newser Staff

Posted Jun 12, 2012 9:25 AM CDT

(Newser) – As the saying goes, crime doesn't pay, and when it comes to bank robbery, that's apparently true. The average per-person take from a US bank heist is a mere $4,330, according to a new study spotted by Gizmodo. The research heaps more rain on a would-be robber's parade, noting that after four heists, said criminal is more likely to find himself in jail than free, meaning a life spent rolling on a bed covered in Benjamins is probably truly just the stuff of Hollywood.

The study notes that British bank robbers fare a bit better, walking away with closer to $20,000 per person; having a bigger group and guns boosts the size of the loot, too, but it's still not enough to justify a stint in prison, let alone to retire on. Writing in the statistics journal Significance, the authors sum up their findings: "The return on an average bank robbery is, quite frankly, rubbish."

Just in case you were thinking about robbing a bank, don't. A new statistical analysis shows that it is not worth your time.
Just in case you were thinking about robbing a bank, don't. A new statistical analysis shows that it is not worth your time.   (Shutterstock)
In this May,14, 2010 image taken from bank surveillance video and released by the FBI on Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2010, a thief dubbed the Balding Bandit is shown.
In this May,14, 2010 image taken from bank surveillance video and released by the FBI on Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2010, a thief dubbed the "Balding Bandit" is shown.   (AP Photo/FBI)
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COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 3 comments
Motherchucker
Jun 12, 2012 11:54 AM CDT
It pays better to be on the other side as in 'legal' ways of robbing the public blind. IE being a wall street banker. High pay, no risk, always bailed out and never go to jail.
Utgard_Loki
Jun 12, 2012 11:25 AM CDT
In Soviet Russia, bank robs YOU!  Wait a minute... That happens in the U.S.  I'm on Bizzarro Earth!  Aaaarrrrrrrrrrrggghhhh!!!
 

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