1831 City Bank of New York theft
| Industry | Banking |
|---|---|
| Founded | before 1831 |
| Headquarters | New York City , United States |
| Products | Banking services |
The 1831 City Bank of New York burglary took place on March 19, 1831, in New York City, when thieves gained entry to City Bank (present-day Citibank) on Wall Street by using duplicated keys and absconded with $245,000 in cash (value at the time). This event ranks among the earliest documented bank thefts in American history. When adjusted for inflation, the stolen sum is equivalent to over $52 million in 2013 currency. Initial accounts implicated Edward Smith, Edward Jones, James Honeyman, and James Murray as suspects; however, contemporary investigations have identified James Honeyman and William J. Murray as the actual offenders.
Operating under false names such as "Smith" and "Jones," Honeyman and Murray spent approximately $60,000 prior to their arrest. While Murray escaped to Philadelphia, Honeyman remained in New York using an assumed identity. Both were ultimately convicted and received five-year sentences at Sing Sing prison.
The Connecticut Courant attributed Honeyman’s apprehension to High Constable Hays. Honeyman had previously been detained for a robbery in Brooklyn and worked as a Morocco leather dresser while managing a modest shoe shop on Bowery that attracted a questionable clientele. Initial inspections of his Division Street home uncovered no incriminating evidence until a lodging house keeper informed Hays after witnessing Honeyman transporting a trunk. A follow-up search revealed the majority of the stolen money concealed beneath garments inside the trunk. Honeyman was held at New York’s colonial-era Bridewell jail.
Items recovered included: $57,328 in City Bank bills; $501,118 in assorted city notes; $44,000 in Lansingburgh Bank currency; $20,000 in Morris Canal notes; $8,272 in outdated notes associated with S. & M. Allen; and $40 in counterfeit bills. Roughly $63,000 was never recovered, including 398 doubloon coins.
