Bonnie & Clyde, Billy the Kid, Jesse James: great names in the days of “lawless” American. Those modern day Robin Hoods stole from the rich (banks) and gave to the poor (themselves), with equal amounts of daring, intelligence and bravado. As the Janis Joplin song suggests “...when you’ve got nothing, you’ve got nothing to lose...”
Hungary adds a name to its own list of criminal infamy; Attila Ambrus, the Whisky Robber, as the moniker has been applied, who has become the media darling of late for his incredible string of bank robberies, 29 in all. Ambrus and partner, Gábor Orbán, netted 150 million forints in their six year long career that befuddled the police and endeared them to the populous. Speaking from prison to Budapest Style, Ambrus recounts his exploits and the deliberate creation of his image. From a full back page in Népszabadság to every major TV channel, Ambrus tells his incredible tale to eager audiences.
A 32 year Transylvanian Hungarian, Ambrus seems the picture of respectability. Articulate, well dressed and polite, he charms all he meets with his demeanor and tales of countryside life; he even had sportsman status playing for the Hungarian National Hockey team. But beneath that lay a calculating mind, one that wanted more out of life than the average Hungarian. “I always liked fast cars, women and money,” he states with a smile, “plus adventure,” he adds.
Adventure he certainly found as his string of robberies became more and more audacious. Always drinking whisky before the robberies and leaving the bottle, Ambrus played a mockery of the security system that guards Hungary’s banks. “I learned from the Red Guard in Germany. Hungary’s system [with little attention paid to drive-away robberies] is similar to Germany’s twenty years ago,” he said. His most daring operative came December 16, 1997, when he held up the OTP branch at Grassalkovics for 11 million forints but still made it back for hockey practice, which served as his alibi. Throughout the exploits, even his victims attest to his civility and non-violent nature. “Oh, Atilla is a character all right,” said Zsolt Bérdi, Head of Homicide at the Batthany jail where Ambrus is being held. “One old lady came in when Attila was holding up a bank and Attila said to lay down. She started to ask him why and he very nicely explained that he was robbing the bank. She said that it was hard for her to lay down at which point Attila helped her to the floor and she thanked him for being so nice about it.” His final robbery came late last year as Ambrus tried to flee to Slovakia, but first made sure his dog was all right. “That was stupid,” he recalls “but what’s done is done.”
What’s next for our Natural Born Bank Robber? “Right now I’m working on my book,” the first such account in Hungary he says with a smile, “for instance I went on TV and they cut what I said. This book will tell the truth.” That creative editing came via Frei Dosszie which cut the quote: “Look at Mária Tocsik who got away with 900 million Ft, or Gábor Princz of OTP who stole billions of forints. Where are they now? Free. And where am I for stealing 150 million? In prison. I ask you is that justice?” Maybe not, but it’s a question that Ambrus will have 15 years to ponder; this the likely sentence he’ll receive come May at his trial.
