Catt family

Last updated

Catt family of bank robbers
Founding location McMinnville, Oregon, United States
Years active2010–2012
Territory Portland, Oregon, and
Katy, Texas, areas
MembershipRonald Scott Catt
Hayden Catt
Abigail Catt
Leader(s)Scott Catt
ActivitiesBank robberies

The Catt family, Ronald "Scott" Catt, and eventually his two children, Hayden and Abigail Catt, were responsible for a number of bank robberies in the Portland, Oregon and Houston, Texas areas. [1] After the death of his wife, Catt was facing financial difficulties due in part to his drug and alcohol addictions and unstable employment history. [1] [2] Catt decided to bolster the family income by robbing banks. Catt and his family committed several robberies, all occurring while the family lived a seemingly typical middle-class American life. [1] [3]

Contents

Family background

Ronald Scott Catt (born 1963, and known as "Scott") was an engineer married to "Beth" [nee Worrell] Catt. The couple had two children and lived in Dundee, Oregon, 45 miles outside Portland. After the 1997 death of his wife due to breast cancer, Scott Catt became addicted to drugs and alcohol. At the time of their mother's death, son Hayden was five and daughter Abby two years old. Friends afterward still saw Catt as a devoted single father to his children. [4]

Hayden and Abby eventually attended McMinnville High School, where they were both honor students and members of the swimming team. [4] Scott Catt was president of the McMinnville Swim Club board of directors and considered a well respected leader in the community. [1] In 2011, Catt again lost his job and his house was foreclosed on. He connected with a corporate headhunter specializing in engineering, and relocated to Texas in January 2012. His children dropped out of school; Abby went to live with her grandmother, while Hayden moved to Hawaii to work at a resort. [1]

Hayden and Abby, however, soon joined Scott in Texas. The family lived in the Nottingham Place apartment complex in a middle-class community of Katy, Texas, a western suburb of Houston. [4] Around the complex, the Catts were considered "just everyday, harmless people." [1] Catt held down a well-paying job as an engineer designing ore-moving systems for coke plants; Abby worked at the Victoria's Secret outlet at the Katy Mall; and Hayden attempted to get established as a concierge in an hotel. [1]

"I did it for the family... I swear to you, I would only rob banks for my family." —Scott Catt [3]

Robberies

Sometime between 2000 and 2002, Catt began a series of as many as five Portland-area bank robberies—most without the knowledge of his children—which spanned a time-frame of several years. [1] Catt has commented that it was an attempt to keep his family solvent while feeding his old addictions—to which a compulsion to rob banks with some regularity was now being added. [5]

Portland, Oregon area

Because Catt's father had been a loan officer in a local bank, he had gained an insider's knowledge of day-to-day banking procedures. Catt remembered his father telling him as a boy of the day the local bank—at which he worked—was robbed. When Catt inquired why no one had tried to stop it, his father told him that the preferred employee response to a bank robbery is to comply with the robbers and give them any money requested (as the money was insured, and the bank would get back any monetary losses it suffered). The first bank Catt robbed was the very one at which his father had worked, just a couple of blocks from where he was living in McMinnville. The robbery went off with no trouble and netted him around $2,500. It was a year before Catt robbed another bank, and he continued, committing another bank robbery every year or so, as the need arose. These usually netted him $5,000–$10,000 per job. [1]

In 2010, again behind on his bills, Catt planned to do another robbery. It was then he realized that with some additional help and the possibility of allowing him to get into the vault, he would be able to get more money during a bank robbery. Feeling unable to trust anyone except family, Catt asked his son to help him with what he referred to as his "part-time job". Hayden reluctantly agreed to join him, and at one point actually accompanied his father in casing a bank targeted by his father as the next to rob. [1] On the day of the planned operation, however, he became too nervous to leave the apartment, so Scott simply robbed the bank himself, showing Hayden how easy it was. [1]

Houston, Texas area

Starting fresh in Texas in 2012, Catt, now with the help of both his children, decided to embark on a crime spree, while the family kept up a facade of normality. [3] The first robbery that Scott Catt perpetrated with the help of his family occurred at a Comerica Bank in Harris County on August 9, 2012. [4] Scott and Hayden entered the bank wearing hats, sunglasses, respirators (surgical masks), gloves, and painters' coveralls, and armed with lethal-looking Airsoft pistols (pellet guns). Abigail waited outside in the family car, a green 1999 Volkswagen Jetta equipped with stolen license plates taped over their own. [1] [5]

"I didn't feel like a criminal ... I didn't load my pistol. I knew I wasn't going to shoot anybody. And I kept telling myself that whatever money I got was insured, so who was really being hurt?" —Scott Catt [1]

The second robbery, which occurred November 9, 2012, took place at the First Community Credit Union in Katy. Because preliminary observations of the intended target showed a construction project was taking place nearby, Scott and Hayden wore bright orange safety vests and sunglasses to blend in with the numerous construction workers in the area. [1] [4] This time, Hayden wore a fake mustache, and Scott wore his familiar painter's mask. Abigail Catt once again drove the getaway vehicle. [6]

Together, the two robberies netted the family $170,000 from the Texas banks. [7] [3]

Capture

Police investigating the robberies as captured on the bank's CCTV footage of the second robbery in Houston, noted the newness of the orange safety vests the duo wore. By viewing recent video footage of area hardware store transactions, they were able to trace the purchase of the vests to a nearby Home Depot, where the Catt siblings were clearly identified buying the vests with their father's credit card. [4] [5] On the morning of November 9, 2012, as the Catt family was making the final preparations for their third and fourth robberies in the area (which were both scheduled for the next day), Scott and his son were arrested at their apartment without incident. After interviewing both of them and contacting Abby, she turned herself in the same day. [1]

Sentencing

Although the statute of limitations for the Oregon robberies had expired by the time of the family's capture, [2] they were still able to be considered in the sentencing phase of the trial. [1] On November 14, 2013, in plea arrangements, Hayden Catt accepted a ten-year sentence in prison while his sister Abigail was given five years—both being found guilty of one count of aggravated robbery. [5] [8] The following month, Ronald "Scott" Catt pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and received a 24-year prison sentence. The FBI suspected the father had committed other bank robberies in Oregon, but those were before his children were taking any part in robbing banks. [1] [8]

Release

On September 11, 2015, it was reported that Abigail Catt was granted parole after spending two years and 11 months of her five-year sentence at Fort Bend County Jail. The sheriff of Fort Bend had held her at the jail instead of sending her to the prison due to the circumstances and him seeing her as a victim and wanting to help her prepare for a promising future. [9] Following her release, however, she was re-jailed for over a year due to parole violations. [7]

Related Research Articles

Great Train Robbery (1963) Train robbery

The Great Train Robbery was the robbery of £2.6 million from a Royal Mail train heading from Glasgow to London on the West Coast Main Line in the early hours of 8 August 1963, at Bridego Railway Bridge, Ledburn, near Mentmore in Buckinghamshire, England.

Willie Sutton American bank robber

William Francis Sutton Jr. was an American bank robber. During his forty-year robbery career he stole an estimated $2 million, and he eventually spent more than half of his adult life in prison and escaped three times. For his talent at executing robberies in disguises, he gained two nicknames, "Willie the Actor" and "Slick Willie". Sutton is also known as the namesake of the so-called Sutton's law, although he denied originating it.

J. L. Hunter "Red" Rountree was an American folk hero who was believed to have been the world's oldest active bank robber. On August 12, 2003, Rountree walked into the First American Bank in Abilene, Texas, to hand a large envelope to the teller marked "robbery." Moments later, Rountree sped off in a 1996 Buick Regal with $2,000.00 in small bills. He was arrested shortly thereafter when a witness wrote down his car license plate number.

Earl Edwin Austin was an American criminal and bank robber who had been listed on the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted" list during the 1970s.

Ronnie Leibowitz

Ronnie Leibowitz is a convicted Israeli bank robber, nicknamed Ofnobank, due to his reported theft methods. In English this moniker has been translated as Bikerbank or the Motorcycle Bandit.

Santa Claus Bank Robbery Bank robbery in Texas

The Santa Claus Bank Robbery occurred on December 23, 1927, in the Central Texas town of Cisco. Marshall Ratliff, dressed as Santa Claus, along with Henry Helms and Robert Hill, all ex-cons, and Louis Davis, a relative of Helms, held up the First National Bank in Cisco. The robbery is one of Texas' most infamous crimes, having invoked the largest manhunt ever seen in the state. Eyewitness Boyce House wrote that this was "the most spectacular crime in the history of the Southwest ... surpassing any in which Billy the Kid or the James boys had ever figured."

Carl Gugasian is an American bank robber, known as "The Friday Night Bank Robber", who served a 17-year sentence for robbery. He is perhaps the most prolific of such criminals in US history, having robbed more than 50 banks over a 30-year period of a total of more than $2 million.

I Stole a Million is a 1939 film noir crime film starring George Raft as a cab driver turned small-time crook who makes a big score and lives to regret it. The supporting cast includes Claire Trevor, Dick Foran, and Victor Jory. The movie was written by Nathanael West based on a story idea by Lester Cole, which in turn was based on the life story of bank robber Roy Gardner. It was directed by Frank Tuttle, and released by Universal Pictures.

Ralph Fults was a Depression-era outlaw and escape artist associated with Raymond Hamilton, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow of the Barrow Gang.

James Page is a former professional boxer in the welterweight (147lb) division.

The Wheaton Bandit is an unidentified bank robber suspected to be responsible for as many as 16 armed robberies around Wheaton, Illinois from 2002 to 2006. He appeared to be 25 to 35 years old at the time of the robberies, always wore a hood or ski mask, and wore different clothing in each robbery. Instead of placing his finger on the gun trigger, he often kept his trigger finger along the side of the gun, a safety position that suggests law enforcement or military training. Outlines of his jackets suggest that he also wore a bulletproof vest.

The Newton Gang was an outlaw gang of the early 20th century, and the most successful train robbers and bank robbers in history. From 1919 through 1924 the gang robbed dozens of banks, claiming a total of eighty-seven banks (unconfirmed) and six trains (confirmed). According to Willis Newton, the brothers "took in more money than the Dalton Gang, Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch and the James-Younger Gang combined." According to their own claims, they never killed anyone. It is true that they were never charged with any death or injuries associated with their robberies, although one daylight robbery in Toronto, Ontario, Canada proved nearly fatal for one bank messenger.

McMinnville High School Public school in McMinnville, Yamhill County, Oregon, United States

McMinnville High School is a public high school located in McMinnville, Oregon, United States.

Jaime Giménez Arbe is a Spanish anarchist and bank robber known as El Solitario.

Eddie Bentz

Edward Wilhelm Bentz was an American bank robber and Depression-era outlaw. He was associated with several high-profile public enemies during his criminal career, including Harvey Bailey, Albert Bates, George "Machine Gun" Kelly and Baby Face Nelson. He was eventually captured by the FBI and sentenced to Alcatraz.

James Franklin "Frank" Sawyer was an American Depression-era bank robber and prison escapee. An associate of Jim Clark, Ed Davis and other fellow Oklahoma bandits, he was a participant in countless bank robberies throughout Kansas and Oklahoma between 1917 and 1933. He was wrongfully imprisoned for a 1932 bank robbery in Fort Scott, Kansas and spent almost 40 years in prison before he was pardoned by Governor Robert Docking in 1969.

Bisbee massacre

The Bisbee massacre occurred in Bisbee, Arizona, on December 8, 1883, when six outlaws who were part of the Cochise County Cowboys robbed a general store. Believing the general store's safe contained a mining payroll of $7,000, they timed the robbery incorrectly and were only able to steal between $800 to $3,000, along with a gold watch and jewelry. During the robbery, members of the gang killed four people, including a lawman and a pregnant woman. Six men were convicted of the robbery and murders. John Heath, who was accused of organizing the robbery, was tried separately and sentenced to life in prison. The other five men were convicted of murder and sentenced to hang.

Anthony Curcio

Anthony J. Curcio is an American author, public speaker, convicted robber, and former career criminal. In 2008, Curcio was responsible for one of the most elaborately planned armored car heists in U.S. history. He was eventually arrested and sentenced to six years in federal prison. Upon his release from prison, he parlayed his criminal career into becoming a motivational speaker, in the field of drug abuse and crime prevention, speaking to students and athletes across the U.S. He has been featured in GQ, Esquire, 20/20, Fox News, NPR, and NBC, among other media outlets.

Jeffrey Shuman is an American-French bank robber, dubbed "The Vaulter", considered to be one of Canada's most prolific bank robbers. In 1994, he pleaded guilty to robbing 14 banks in the United States, receiving a 12-year sentence, but was released in 2004, and fled the country while on parole. He then robbed 21 banks in Canada, before fleeing to France on his French passport. In 2016, he was extradited to Canada, and in 2017, was sentenced to 15 years in prison and ordered to pay back nearly $450,000 in restitution after pleading guilty to seven counts of robbery using a firearm.

Benjamin Hoskins Paddock American bank robber and con man

Benjamin Hoskins Paddock Jr. was an American bank robber and con man who was on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list from 1969 to 1977.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 I Would Only Rob Banks for My Family; article; Skip Hollandsworth; June 2014 issue; Texas Monthly; accessed May 2014
  2. 1 2 Catt family bank robberies: How it all began Archived July 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine ; By Bob Heye; December 13, 2013; "On Your Side Investigator" article; KATU online; accessed May 2014
  3. 1 2 3 4 Scott Catt Convinced Son and Daughter to Join Him as a Bank Robber; May 27, 2014; webpage; News.Com.AU; accessed May 2014
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Catt Family Bank Robbers: Father Ronald Scott Catt and 2 Children Suspected of Multiple Heists; November 19, 2012 11:34 am est, Updated: November 21, 2012; webpage; by Michael McLaughlin; Huffington Post; accessed May 2014
  5. 1 2 3 4 Catt Family: Police say Father, Son, Daughter May be Linked to 7 Bank Heists in Texas and Oregon; webpage; Crimesider Staff; November 19, 2012; CBS News online; accessed May 2014
  6. ↑ Catt Siblings Accept Plea Deals, Sentenced; November 14, 2013; article; Claudia Feldman; Houston Chronicle; accessed May 2014.
  7. 1 2 Abby Catt Wants Fresh Start After Joining Family Bank Robbery Business; by Jill Sederstrom; webpage; June 27, 2019; Oxygen.com online; 20/20 interview; accessed May 2020
  8. 1 2 Father of Alleged Family of Robbers Pleads Guilty Archived May 27, 2014, at the Wayback Machine ; December 6, 2013; Staff; News 92 Houston online; accessed May 2014.
  9. ↑ "Woman Freed After Robbery Spree with Dad and Brother" . Retrieved September 11, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.