A witness pointed authorities to a man named Kenneth Barnes (another compulsive hoarder), a close friend of Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong, claiming that Barnes had been involved in the bomb collar case. He told Evil Genius Borzillieri that Wells was aware of the plan but tried backing out after learning the collar bomb was live. They said that if he followed the instructions on the paper, he would be able to disarm the bomb and would be unhurt, but he had a time limit he had to follow. There was no remote detonator. The impact caused a contusion to his chest and stoppage of his heart. WebThe notes given to Wells. Collar-Bomb Case Charges in Bizarre 03 Bank Heist. But at a 2007 news conference that drew the ire of Wells family, prosecutors said he was not entirely innocent and had a limited role in planning the robbery. While some might expect the Netflix series to tread lightly around the violent death of Brian Wells, Evil Genius is a particularly jarring reminder that there are no guidelines restricting gruesome images from being shown onscreen. If not for losing his life, he could have gotten a personal injury lawyer and built a case against them. Wells' family said he In interviews, Rothstein cooperated and told police that he didn't kill James Roden. He handed the teller a note demanding $250,000. The bank teller went through emotional distress and would need a personal injury lawyer for her case. In 2003, when the terrible incident took place, Brian was 46 years old. The treasure hunt, as authorities later called it, involved Wells going to specific locations to find items and four special keys that the instructions said would unlock the collar around his neck. A man named Bill Rothstein contacted police and told them, quite plainly, that there was a dead man in his freezer, according to All That's Interesting. He was dead, and the whole ordeal was captured on camera by local news film crews who were documenting the riveting arrest. The weirdest part was Marjories reason for wanting to rob the bank: Ken said Marjorie wanted to rob the bank in order to kill her father to get an inheritance. A 46-year-old pizza delivery man with a bomb fastened around his neck robbed a Pennsylvania bank in August 2003, walking out with more than $8,000 in cash. Link your TV provider to stream full episodes and live TV. With cameras pointed at handcuffed Brian Douglas Wells as he was sitting on the road surrounded by the police cars, 15 minutes before the bomb squad arrived, the WebBrian Wells collar bomb explosion. On August 27, 2003, Diehl-Armstrong, Barnes, Wells and other unindicted co-conspirators met to discuss the next days plot. The first steps of the instructions told him to drive back across town, go into a specific PNC bank, and hand a note to the teller. "The family will be satisfied when everybody is held to account for their actions that day," Wells said. From the 1960s to the early 1970s, Rothstein was in a romantic relationship with Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong. Bank employees are trained to be aware of threats, to be on alert for anything that might be amiss. Rothstein agreed to hide the body in his house and eventually dispose of it, but later changed his mind and called police. Wells, 46, never returned to the pizza shop. Shortly after, authorities arrested Diehl-Armstrong, who later implicated herself and Rothstein in the collar bomb crime. Around midday on August 28 2003, 46-year-old delivery driver Brian Wells clocked in for his usual lunchtime shift at Mama Mias Pizzeria in Erie, Pennsylvania. 7. Bill said he went to Marjories, wrapped the body in tarps, and dragged it to his van, before taking it home and putting it in the freezer. It also describes violent content that some audiences may find disturbing. In 1990, she married her next serious boyfriend, Richard Armstrong, who she called her one true love. He was born on November 15, 1956, to Rose Wells and Harold Wells in Warren, Pennsylvania. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Police believed her, but not in the way she expected. The debated question of Wells true involvement, as well as how the investigation unfolded, is re-examined in Netflixs four-part docu series Evil Genius: The True Story of Americas Most Diabolical Bank Heist, which is streaming now. It was a bank robbery? No one knows for sure who wrote them. In Wells car, investigators found pages of detailed instructions on how to find the key and combination codes that would disarm and remove the bomb. Everyone can be their own personal Sherlock Holmes, and you don't even have to go outside. Now in a state mental hospital, Marjories testimony against Bill would be useless. She was found guilty of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, conspiracy to commit armed bank robbery and armed bank robbery, officials said. However, in one twist among many, it was not realistically possible for Wells to complete the instructions in enough time to save himself from the bomb. The papers were addressed to the Bomb Hostage and contained directions first to rob the bank and then to proceed on an elaborate scavenger hunt for keys and codes to disable the explosive Wells wore. Rothstein would have a better chance with a personal injury lawyer for his case. Minutes later, with police surrounding him nearby, that man, Brian Wells, pleaded for help. He walked up to a bank teller and handed her a note, informing her that he needed $250,000 in a bag. She said the investigators set her up and the government framed her, and that Bill was the true mastermind.. Diehl-Armstrong was meant to receive some of the heist money, which was what she and Roden had been arguing about when she killed him. The riveting episode airs exclusively on the popular true crime network Oxygen on Wednesday, December 21, 2022, at 7 pm Eastern Time (ET). Four years after a pizza delivery man in Erie, Pennsylvania, robbed a bank with a time-bomb secured to his neck and then died when it detonated during a standoff with police, charges have been filed against two people for their alleged roles in the case. Long Waits, Short Appointments, Huge Bills. The grand jury is not expected to hear the government's presentment a formal detailing of the evidence until next month, the law enforcement official said. 10. 8. He was instructed to get $250,000 within 15 minutes. Why is no one coming to get this thing off of me? he asked authorities. Or, at least, that was the story, but in an interview for Netflix's 2018 mini-series about the case, Evil Genius, Hoopsick claimed that this wasn't actually true. The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections said Hoopsick had been in the state prison system for theft between May 2012 and July 2014, when she was paroled. The vault was on a time delay, and it would take longer than the 15 minutes allotted in his note. At 3:18pm the bomb exploded. Either way, Barnes said that Wells and Roden knew the full details of the plot and had been killed to ensure their silence. Wells would be the delivery driver. The movie 30 Minutes Or Less basically has the same plot as this crime. He also helped Marjorie get rid of the gun, sawing it into pieces and melting it down with a torch. Brian Douglas Wells (November 15, 1956 August 28, 2003) was an American man who died after being forced to be involved in a complex plot involving a bank robbery, a scavenger hunt, and a homemade explosive device. Wells was killed when an explosive collar detonated while he was surrounded by police in his hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania. He seemed like any other ordinary customer who might have come in that day except for one very odd thing he had a large, metal collar around his neck. All right, well we've had those before, and many times you arrive on scene and they're hoax devices. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. Create your free profile and get access to exclusive content. . Get all your true crime news from Oxygen. Another suspect, Kenneth Barnes a longtime friend of Diehl-Armstrongs told authorities that Diehl-Armstrong solicited him to kill Roden and also Diehl-Armstrongs father because he was giving away money she believed was her inheritance to charities and friends. I dont have a lot of time, he said, according to a video Please logout and login again. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. Oxygen Insider is your all-access pass to never-before-seen content, free digital evidence kits, and much more. What Injuries Do Robert J. DeBry Car Accident Lawyers Accept? This collar was attached to a box under his shirt, creating a large lump under the t-shirt. Somewhere along the planning phase, they deceived Wells that he would be wearing a fake bomb. The co-conspirators watched from a distance until Wells was stopped by police, at which time they fled. Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for the Netflix docuseries Evil Genius. At about 2:20 p.m., Wells entered a bank and presented the teller a demand note. Heres what to know about the collar bomb case: On Aug. 28, 2003, Wells was working as a pizza deliveryman when he walked into a PNC Bank in Erie, Pa. at about 2:20 p.m. and handed the teller a note demanding $250,000. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Please consult us at, Wells and his counterparts set a detailed plan in motion on August 28th, 2003. Wells' family has said they believe he was just a victim, and have criticized the pace of the investigation. Direccin: Calzada de Guadalupe No. Brian Douglas Wells was 46-years-old and wasn't a bank robber. Meanwhile, here are some truly mind-blowing facts about the case to whet your whistle. 1155, Col. San Juan de Guadalupe C.P. The next time he was seen was later that same afternoon, when he walked into Eries PNC Bank and passed the teller a note demanding $250,000. It may be that his role transitioned from that of the planning stages to being an unwilling participant in the scheme, Buchanan said. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Bill Rothstein couldnt bring himself to chop up James Rodens body. A balding man with thick glasses, the only thing that made him stand out was his strange choice in attire. Fisher's theory goes even further, though, claiming that Rothstein's crime wasn't about money but about making a puzzle that would confound authorities, according to Wired. It beeped for about 10 seconds before it detonated, killing Wells and stunning an audience that had gathered to watch the bizarre situation unfold. According to an FBI affidavit, Rothstein said his former fiance, Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong, had murdered her own boyfriend, James Roden, and stuffed his body in the freezer. They used the time limits from the pages and found that it was physically impossible for someone to complete the steps necessary in the 55 total minutes allotted. Because Wells owed Barnes and his friends so much money, he had no choice but to participate, according to Wired. He passed away in jail owing to diabetes on June 20, 2019. With a walking-stick and a huge protrusion in the front of his shirt what bank customers thought was a neck injury apparatus, but Wells claimed was a bomb and his t-shirt with Guess spray painted across it. A still showing Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong from "Evil Genius: The True Story of America's Most Diabolical Bank Heist" on Netflix. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. PEOPLE has been given exclusive access to the detailed notes recovered by investigators who searched Wells car. On August 28, Wells was forced to go to Erie's PNC Bank to carry out a heist. Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. This was a lengthy and complex investigation, Morrow said. Evil Genius trailer. There are also rumors that perhaps the mastermind was never arrested, assuming that neither Diehl-Armstrong nor Rothstein was capable of coming up with such a complex plot. Kenneth Barnes was reportedly a retired TV repairman, a drug dealer, and a friend of Diehl-Armstrong's. In 2008, Barnes was sentenced to 270 months for conspiracy to commit armed bank robbery, using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, according to FCI Coleman Low, the federal correctional facility where hes currently incarcerated in Florida. D'Ambrosio did not immediately return a message left at his office Friday. Kenneth Barnes had already pleaded guilty as part of his deal in 2008, according to All That's Interesting. The prosecution sold Marjorie as the catalyst for the entire robbery/bombing, despite Bill building the bomb, and her clear mental instability. In her youth, she was very well-liked and considered to be highly intelligent. Indeed, Marjorie would only leave the house one night per week--on garbage pickup night, shed scour the neighborhood looking for things on the side of the road to add to her collection of hoarded ephemera. Rothstein's letter had been incorrect James Roden's death was directly connected to the case. Wells warned police that he was wearing a bomb and running out of time, but as bomb technicians were summoned the device exploded, killing Wells and leaving behind an odd lot of clues and characters. The crime went down in 2003, when a pizza delivery man was jumped, fitted with a collar that he was told was a bomb, and sent on a bizarre scavenger hunt that involved robbing a bank. As was later proved in court, Diehl-Armstrong hatched the robbery scheme to force Wells into the PNC Bank in Erie with a ticking bomb around his neck because she apparently needed money so she that could have her father killed. 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