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CBS4 Goes Inside The Mind Of A Bank Robber

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Feb 8, 2010 10:10 pm US/Mountain

CBS4 Goes Inside The Mind Of A Bank Robber

DENVER (CBS4) ― There has been a renewed popularity over the last several months in the metro area when it comes to bank robberies and CBS4 investigator Rick Sallinger wanted to get inside the mind of someone who robbed banks for a living.

Sallinger first met artist Ron Mays in the early 1980s when he broke into the Denver Art Museum to hang up one of his own paintings. Sallinger later learned Mays was sent to prison not long after that for robbing banks.

Sallinger asked Mays if he was nervous as he entered a bank he intended to rob.

"Of course, because you never know if you are going to walk out," Mays said.

One of the banks Mays robbed was the Aurora National Bank, which had just turned him down for a loan, so he made a withdrawal in a different way.

"I just walked in these two sets of doors, walked over to the check table and wrote my note and gave it to the teller," Mays said.

The note read "give me all of your money." The teller complied. He said he walked out with $11,000.

"I went to my art studio, threw the money in the middle of the room and was very sick for three days. I couldn't even think about the jackpot," he said.

He said his dedication to his art work is the reason he started robbing banks. In 1981 Mays broke into the Denver Art Museum and hung one of his paintings in hopes the museum would pay more attention to local artists. But robbing banks was about getting money to have the freedom to pursue his art.

"What do you want to do, take your chances holding up a 7-Eleven and walk away with $50, $100? Or do you want to walk into a bank and possibly walk out with 10 to 20 grand?"

The recent rash of bank robberies in Colorado has been described as an epidemic. Bank robberies are up 37 percent from a year ago. There have been hostage takings and shootouts that left two robbers dead.

Law enforcement authorities recently gathered with bank executives for training and to send a message.

"If you rob a bank we're going to catch you and you're going to go to jail for a long time," said Jim Davis, FBI Special Agent in Charge.

Mays said he robbed nine banks without ever using a weapon or a mask.

"I thought I had a higher calling. I thought I was too good to go to prison," he said. "I thought God was on my side. That's why I got away with it last time."

The law finally caught up with him after he went to a bar and bought drinks with some of the bank's cash that was tainted with red dye dropped in by a teller. The bartender called the authorities.

"We're desperate to fulfill a dream, an ambition, or just to make ends meet," he said.

Mays lost 5 1/2 years of his life in prison. In all he figures he took in about $100,000 over four years. That's $25,000 a year -- not that much. Besides the 5 1/2 years in prison, he has lost his right to vote and has difficulty getting jobs. It has made it harder to sell his beloved art work. He said he will never rob a bank again.

Since the first of the year there have been 22 bank robberies in Colorado. Eight of the robberies have been solved.

(© MMX CBS Television Stations, Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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