Infamous American thief Bill Miner, also known as the Gentleman Bandit, escapes from the New Westminster penitentiary after having been sentenced to 25 years for his part in a botched CPR train robbery near Kamloops two years earlier.
Miner had achieved folk hero status among many B.C. residents both for stealing from the widely unpopular CPR and for his non-violent and courteous manner when committing his crimes. He fled home to the U.S. where he continued his train robbing career and managed to escape from prison two more times before finally dying of natural causes in a Georgia cell at the age of 67.
The Grey Fox, a Genie-winning 1982 film starring Richard Farnsworth, is based on his exploits.
