The Failed Mendham Borough Bank Heist Of 1961

MENDHAM, NJ — Do you know the story of Mendham Borough's two attempted bank robbers?

Mendham Borough has long been thought of as a safe and quiet town, however, in 1961, two men were planning a robbery that would soon be foiled by both police and local residents.

The Jan. 5, 1962, issue of Life Magazine included a two-page "Special Report" titled "The Great but Very, Very Late Bank Robbery" on the robbery of Morris County Savings Bank's Mendham office.

Mendham had a population of about 2,700 people in the 1960s and was described by officials as the "kind of place where everybody knows everybody else," which meant that when two unknown men wandered into town, it sparked some suspicion.

"Bottom line: the two robbers took nearly two years to finally decide to commit the heist and being strangers in town, by that time not only the police force but nearly everyone else in the borough knew and was prepared for what was coming," the Centennial Book Committee wrote in "Reflections on a Community: Mendham Borough."

Earl Moore, the police chief at the time, saw the robbers casing the bank on their first visit in March 1960. An anonymous tip was later received, license plates were checked, and the identity of one of the pair, William Redic, was discovered.

Chief Moore kept a folder labeled "Planned Robbery of Mendham Bank" that was updated as the pair continued to visit the borough.

The bank robbers continued to stalk the borough for months, interacting with bank employees and even going as far as applying for local jobs at an old grocery store, all while being watched every step of the way.

A bomb threat was called into local schools a few days before the heist attempt to distract law enforcement, Life magazine reported at the time. The Mendham police department, however, was not fooled, and Redic and his partner, Robert Grogan, fled the scene.

The delayed robbery attempt finally occurred on Oct. 18, 1961.

The next day, as he threw out his lunch in the incinerator out back, the Mendham bank manager happened to notice the robbers slowly driving behind the bank, according to news reports from the time.

After a few more passes, the thieves parked their car and entered the bank.

According to Life magazine, Grogan demanded the money and claimed to be desperate while brandishing a.38-caliber revolver at the bank manager.

Redic and Grogan eventually emerged from the bank with $10,678, only to be met by Chief Moore, Officer James Cillo, Officer Frank Geraghty and two special officers drafted for the occasion, the Centennial Book Committee wrote.

According to the FBI, robbing any national bank or state member bank of the Federal Reserve System became a federal crime in 1934, meaning the two robbers would have likely faced federal prosecution.