"Great" train robbers

[mr.ton]

Everytime i hear about Ronnie Biggs being spoken about on the news - it makes me sick the way he is always referred to as the "great" train robber.

There is nothing "great" about him whatsoever.

He was part of the gang who left the train driver fighting for his life & stuck 2 fingers up to justice for about 30 years or so

He only came back here when he wanted to use our health service.

 

 

(feel better for that now lol)

Edited August 7, 2009 by mr.ton

[The GodMother]

I understand how u feel Mr Ton but could u explain to me how come it should be fair that the dangerous criminal that jack straw basically branded him should be allowed to live like that in prison.

 

He is not as dangerous as Jack Straw made out as he cant walk, due to fall in prison which broke his hip, cant talk, cant use the toilet, cant feed himself. He was needing round the clock care that was costing the goverment a lot of money for 4 personal nurses to care for just him.

 

Iam not saying he should not server his time but the goverment could use the space for a more dangerous criminal like a murderer.

 

Also u said they left a train driver fighting for his life. Ronnie was in the get away vichile some 15 minute away from the train so really he had nothing to do with that part.

 

A friend of mine Works at norwivh prison as a officer. He is a lovely bloke and has at times been one of the guards posted to watch biggs. He along with a few of his collegues thing that the Goverment were wrong in making the decision they did last month as its not like he is dangerous and if they were wanting supports of there personal crusade to keep him in prison then they have lost a lot of supporters. if he was that dangerous then maybe he should have been kept in belmarsh not moved to Norwich.

 

I for one am glad he has been released from his sentance as i dont feel it is fair on ANYBODY who is that ill to go threw there dying days like that.

 

Oh and Mr ton thanks u have reminded me to ring my mum. Shes in Norwich Not far from the prison.

[N.P]

I don`t have a problem with it myself. There are far worse people free in the world. than him.

 

He may be a train robber, but at the time, it was the biggest (greatest) and he got away with it. Good on him, I say. At least, unlike nowadays he doesn`t hide in some office building, working for Lloyds TSB, taking hundreds of pounds off you each month. At least he showed his face while robbing the train, instead of hiding behind a telephone.

 

I don`t beleive he ever hurt anyone, so I can`t see the point in locking him away until he dies. The goverment just want him, to say `we`ve finally got you`.

 

If you could rob a bank and get away with it for 30+ years, wouldn`t you take your chances? I think I would. Pedo`s, rapists, murderers, granny beaters, smack heads, and everyone else get less time that they wanted him to serve.

[N.P]

And on top of that, to did it these days your going to need a damned fast horse

[Maggie_moo]

I think he was made an example of, and there are are lot more who deserve worse - Baby Peter's 'birther' and 'partner' spring to mind.

[jailbird]

The train driver acatually died 1 year and 1 week AFTER the robbery so this could not be a murder charge.

 

Prisons are full of old people who are seriously/mentally ill and costing the tax payers a lot of money to keep them there. The Minister for Justice ought to look at this huge problem and come up with alternatives in order for places to be freed to house people convicted of knife/gun crime

[mr.ton]

The fact that he is being constantly called the "great" train robber is just rediculous...there's nothing great about him

[Maggie_moo]

Would this not refer to the scale of the robbery for it's time, rather than the robbers themselves?

[The GodMother]

but as the news keeps reminding us, especially the stuff i have heard, he was not at the train he was 15 minutes away so techinaclly he did not rob the train.

 

NP yes there are far worse ppl in this world that need locking up they were just trying to make a example out of him because he was part of the gang that robbed a train and evaded capture then got caught and convicted then escaped and shew 2 fingers to the authorities for over 30 years.

 

i personally hope his release helps the local area where i live as everyone who is convicted of a crime in norfolk and north soffolk gets sent to Norwich prision. which if the guy come from near me is one less for me to be worrying about and will mean that the useless police force i have experiance may actually be doing there job for a change.

[The GodMother]

oh and yes i do think that baby peters mum and partner deserver more time in prison but hey its only our criminal justice system that would allow a baby murderer to be out in a few years but a elderly very ill man has to be basically dying b4 he gets released.

[pompeyfaith]

Yup and besides there have been many many bigger crimes than this these days for which they get life and are out in 10-15 yrs.

 

In ronnies case the the crime just does not fit the penalty

 

PF

[The GodMother]

which is why the goverment IMO were trying to make a example out of him.

[N.P]

I`m suprised they haven`t locked up all CAG members who dispute their CCA`s yet, for attempted fraud, or some nonsense like that. You`d get 15 year`s, yet a baby killer would be out a week on Thursday, with good behaviour.

 

Whatever people think of the likes of Biggs, people like Biggs have left their mark in History. It would be a truly boring world if everything was hunky dory. We need people like that from time to time, to cause a stink and a bit of inconvenience.

 

That`s what I think anyway.

[pompeyfaith]

And for the record i hold nothing against him for breaking out of Wandsworth if i was there and the chance was there i would do the same if that was anyones fault it was the governments and the prison services fault for having lax security.

 

PF

[N.P]

And for the record i hold nothing against him for breaking out of Wandsworth if i was there and the chance was there i would do the same if that was anyones fault it was the governments and the prison services fault for having lax security.

 

PF

 

 

Of course, let`s not forget it`s every prisoners right to try and escape

[postggj]

ronnie biggs

buster edwards

 

crime did not exactly pay did it in the end

yes it was an attack on the establishment, thats why high sentance was given.

 

now lets look on the other side

 

this guy will prob never leave hospital alive

people say let him rot in jail

 

ime not one.

in a civilised society, what ever the crime, human decency must come first or we are no better than the people committing the crime

[pompeyfaith]

in a civilised society, what ever the crime, human decency must come first or we are no better than the people committing the crime

 

Could not agree more.

 

PF

[postggj]

i used to work very close to the union jack club in waterloo

i passed buster edwards every morning as he used to have a flower stall

 

great train robber

i dont think so

 

by the way

 

they found him in his lock up

he hung himself

 

there is nothing great about these people

they may be criminals but still deserve decency, no matter what they have done

[The GodMother]

which is what i have been saying. My mate who i have know for years and has guarded him said to me its a shame hes there as he is to weak to even speak so he cant be that much of a danger to society.

[pompeyfaith]

Yup TGM

 

So just why did they need two guards watching him, surely one was enough

 

PF

[The GodMother]

PF actually there was 3.

 

As i said how is he a danger to society when he cant walk due to broken hip which happened in prison he cant talk he cant feed him self and he cant use the toilet.

[pompeyfaith]

blimey 3 what a waste of prison resorses and yup its also very unlikely that anyone would atempt to break him free PF

[The GodMother]

one in his room, one outside his room and one outside the ward. Both outside the ward and room checked everybodys id b4 they entered even visitors to other patients were checked and had to be oked and even escorted by specially employed staff if the guard on the ward door thoght they might need it.

 

Yep what a defenat waste in reasource.

[locutus]

Yep what a defenat waste in reasource.

 

Well, a cynic might say the reason he came back was due to his poor health, and to waste resources on his health care, that he had not paid tax or contributed to in any meaningful way.

 

Personally I don't think he should be glorified as a hero or condemned as a villain. Just leave him and his family in peace. I don't think he particularly benefits from being "free", but his family probably appreciate it, and they've committed no crime.

[N.P]

Again, I`m not saying they are hero`s of any sort.

 

I saying the magnitude of the crime at that time was `great`. To pull it off and hide away for 30+ years takes some intelligence. There have probably been, and will be bigger crimes since those days.

 

I`m also saying that it`s a total waste of prison space, guards, tax payers money and whatever else to lock up a guy of this age for the rest of his life, simply because the powers that be are embarrassed about him evading capture for so long.

 

He may have lived a life of luxury for 30+ years, but in a way has been a prisoner of his own, never able to return to see his family, until now.

 

As to him being a dangerous criminal, well, lets not be silly here. Not all crooks pan your head in or kill you. My bank manager robs me from miles away, and I`ve never seen his face once.