As far as robbers go, Jesse Murray isn’t a very good one. In fact, he’s downright hopeless.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Murray held up the Tarrawanna Post Office on the morning of October 4 last year, making off with almost $1,000.
But it appears this was done with minimal, if any, prior organisation; he apparently had no bag in which to put the money, instead choosing to shove it into his pockets and down his pants.
And he also didn’t have a decent getaway plan – something that, while a significant oversight on his behalf, proved very beneficial to the Good Samaritans who aided in his eventual capture.
It was just after 10.30am when Murray wandered into the shop, picked up a bottle of Coke from the fridge and headed to the counter, where he asked the owner for a piece of paper from the fax machine.
A split second later, Murray faced the shopkeep and demanded money, claiming he had a weapon.
The cash was handed over and Murray fled out the rear of the store.
The owner yelled out to workers at a neighbouring fruit shop, prompting two employees to chase Murray along Meadow Street.
By the time they caught up with him, several hundred dollars worth of $50 notes had already managed to escape from Murray’s pockets.
He was eventually cornered by police. Another wad of $50 and $20 notes fell to the ground as Murray was forced to remove his hands from down the front of his pants.
The court heard Murray had made off with $921 in total, but by the time he was arrested had less than $200 on him, having dropped the rest during his escape attempt.
Murray pleaded guilty in court recently to one charge of aggravated robbery. He will be sentenced in March.
The court heard all the dropped cash was collected by witnesses and returned to the shop owner.