Ronnie Leibowitz

Rony leIbowitz – The Motorcycle Bandit
During the year 1990, Rony Leibowitz robed 21 bank branches in a very  original way : He used to come to the bank, riding his motorcycle (An Italian “MotoGuzzi”), in most cases in the Tel Aviv area (At the heart of the state of Israel), robed the Bank, fled (with the money) and hide the heavy motorcycle in a truck that was prepred for that purpose in advance. The police investigators – searching for a runaway motorcycle and not a truck, were unable to locate him. The Media “crowned” him as the “MOTORCYCLE BANDIT” (Or, The Motobank Bandit). Only after 21 robberis took place, Leibowitz was cought.

When Questioned, Leibowitz addmited and confessed at all his bank robberis and cooperated fully with his police investigators. Just a few days after his cupture, he returned all the robbed money. The district court sentenced him to 20 years in prison, but after Leibovitz appealed to the supreme court, his sentence was reduced to 14 years (After the prosecution agreed to this reduction as well).

the verdict
In his verdict, wrote the president of the supreme court of the state of Israel, The Hon. Menachem Alon his conciderations for the sentence reduction :

“The district court judges recognized the appellant confession and deep regrets, but doubted his sincerity, that was their regrettable mistake. The report we were served by the probation officer, which the district court never recived, outlined in minutest details the appellant’s complicated and very complex life story and his deepest remorse. And should the plaintiff will claim, that such regrets was shown before and it is all but exclusive to the appellant in question, here come the appellant before us, and combined the deed of return the robbed money to his deep regret both by word and by heart. The means for the purpose of returen the robbed money will come out of the money that will be recived after selling his house. I sat in court in the cases of many strange and different robbers, and never before brought before me a bank robber, which within days from his confession and regret expression, return all the robbed money to it’s lawful owners, along with personal letter to each bank branch in which he expresse his deepest and most profound regrets, and try to explain why he performed his wrong-doings”.

At the time of the robberis Ronny Leibowitz was the most popular figure in Israel by mocking the Banks and the Police (both subject for anger among the Israeli citizents)