The Gang des postiches () was a team of bank robbers that operated in Paris between 1981 and 1986, robbing around thirty banks. They would enter the bank dressed in common clothing and wearing false

mustache A moustache (; mustache, ) is a growth of facial hair grown above the upper lip and under the nose. Moustaches have been worn in various styles throughout history. Etymology The word "moustache" is French, and is derived from the Itali ...

beard A beard is the hair that grows on the jaw, chin, upper lip, lower lip, cheeks, and neck of humans and some non-human animals. In humans, beards are most commonly seen on pubescent or adult males, though women have been observed with beards ...

s, and wigs (from which they got their name). After entering the bank, they would separate into two groups, the first responsible for taking hostages, while the second went about acquiring cash and emptying

safe deposit box A safe deposit box, sometimes referred to as a safety deposit box, is an individually secured container, usually held within a larger safe or bank vault. Safe deposit boxes are generally located in banks, post offices or other institutions. S ...

es (which were not under surveillance during opening hours). It is estimated that the total value of their activities may have exceeded 30 million

euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

Organisation

The gang was centered around individuals from Belleville, who had been friends and delinquents from a young age:Gang des postiches-Le dernier masque tombe
. ''Liberation'', Patricia Tourancheau, 16 January 2003 * Sidi Mohamed Badaoui, nicknamed ''Bada'' (who was killed before the group became active as "the gang"; it has been suggested that after this event the gang abhorred violence) * Bruno Berliner, nicknamed ''Beau sourire (Nice smile)'' * André Bellaïche, nicknamed ''Dédé'' * Patrick Geay, nicknamed ''Pougache'' * Robert Marguery, nicknamed ''Bichon'' * Jean-Claude Myszka It is known that the group consisted of a core group of five or six (maybe eight) members from eastern Paris, but there were other loose members as well. They convened to commit a series of hold-ups, even several on the same day, then separated for a while (Berliner, for example, lived in the countryside near

Carrouges Carrouges () is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France. The inhabitants are known as ''Carrougiens'' and ''Carrougiennes''. The town is home to a castle (Château de Carrouges), built in the 14th century by Jean de Carrouges a ...

with his wife and son), sometimes going abroad, before they would reconvene. The team is considered one of the most prolific in France's history.

Media involvement

Amidst the robberies, and in the absence of any leads for the investigators, journalists treated the robbers almost as heroes, since the gang was respectful to their hostages and did not hurt them. The robbers addressed the bank patrons and benefited from a strong sympathy among ordinary people, who smiled more than they were bothered when they heard that the ''Gang des postiches'' had struck again. There was even talk of the gang following a leftist guerilla ideology, which was clearly erroneous.

Capture

The police and the government eventually lost patience with the ease with which the ''Gang des postiches'' operated and their mythification by the press. All available resources were deployed to combat them. The police developed an anti-wig device in Paris bank branches. This system was far from effective, but the gang felt the pressure rising around them. They became more cautious, more nervous, and less courteous with the hostages. On 14 January 1986, one such device was triggered, summoning the BRB (Banditry Repression Brigade) and the BRI (Research and Intervention Brigade) to the branch of

Crédit Lyonnais The Crédit Lyonnais (, "Lyon Credit ompany) was a major French bank, created in 1863 and absorbed by former rival Crédit Agricole in 2003. Its head office was initially in Lyon but moved to Paris in 1882. In the early years of the 20th cen ...

on 39, rue du Docteur-Blanche, in the

16th arrondissement The 16th arrondissement of Paris (; ) is the westernmost of the 20 arrondissements of Paris, the capital city of France. Located on the city's Right Bank, it is adjacent to the 17th and 8th arrondissements to the northeast, as well as to the ...

. This time it was effective. Police discreetly surrounded the bank, knowing that the gang was inside, to stop them when they came out. Unfortunately when they came out the situation devolved into chaos, owing to the rash behavior of the head of the BRB, Raymond Mertz, who started a shootout in which Bruno Berliner and a police officer, Jean Vrindts, were killed. In addition, three more policemen were wounded. Marguery was arrested but some of the other robbers managed to escape. Patrick Geay was apprehended, but was released after another, unidentified, member of the gang took the policeman hostage (Geay then took another hostage). Geay and his companion took off in a police car with their hostages. The fiasco revealed serious shortcomings of the police headquarters at

36 quai des Orfèvres 36 may refer to: * 36 (number) * 36 BC * AD 36 * 1936 * 2036 Science * Krypton, a noble gas in the periodic table * 36 Atalante, an asteroid in the asteroid belt Arts and entertainment * ''36'' (TV series), an American sports documentary show ...

, eventually leading to ''L'affaire Loiseau'' (itself leading to films (''

36 Quai des Orfèvres 36 may refer to: * 36 (number) * 36 BC * AD 36 * 1936 * 2036 Science * Krypton, a noble gas in the periodic table * 36 Atalante, an asteroid in the asteroid belt Arts and entertainment * ''36'' (TV series), an American sports documentary show ...

'') and documentaries). See below. While policemen pointed the finger at the BRB director for the fiasco, he was cleared. This situation led to protest and demonstration at

in which it was demanded that Mertz be sacked. In response, the police authorities involved the IGS (in

anglophone The English-speaking world comprises the 88 countries and territories in which English is an official, administrative, or cultural language. In the early 2000s, between one and two billion people spoke English, making it the largest language ...

countries similar to '' internal affairs'') to break up the protest. Later, Mertz (who had strong political support and connections) was even promoted to deputy director of the Paris police. Dominique Loiseau, a BRI officer, was accused of being a

mole Mole (or Molé) may refer to: Animals * Mole (animal) or "true mole" * Golden mole, southern African mammals * Marsupial mole Marsupial moles, the Notoryctidae family, are two species of highly specialized marsupial mammals that are found i ...

. Although he was tried and convicted, serious doubts remained, among some, about the facts. After almost seven years in prison, he was pardoned by

François Mitterrand François Maurice Adrien Marie Mitterrand (26 October 19168 January 1996) was a French politician and statesman who served as President of France from 1981 to 1995, the longest holder of that position in the history of France. As a former First ...

in 1993.

Aftermath

On 31 January 1986, Serge Hernout, nicknamed ''Nounours'', who was a suspected

getaway driver A crime scene getaway is the act of departing from the location where one has committed a crime. It is an act that the offender(s) may or may not have planned in detail, resulting in a variety of outcomes. A :crime scene is the "location of a c ...

for the gang, was arrested in his home at

Bagnolet Bagnolet () is a Communes of France, commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. History On 1 January 1860, the city of Paris was enlarged by annexing neighboring communes. On that occa ...

. On 5 August 1986 Bellaïche and Geay were arrested in Italy. On 23 November 1986, Jean-Claude Myszka organised, together with François Besse (a notorious French jail breaker) the escape from prison of André Bellaïche and his cell mate Gian Luigi Esposito (with a stolen

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

helicopter). They returned to France in a stolen car. Jean-Claude Myszka, André Bellaïche, and Patrick Geay were arrested together with Gian Luigi Esposito in December 1986, in a villa in

Yerres Yerres () is a commune in the Essonne department, in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from Central Paris. Population Inhabitants are called ''Yerrois'' in French. Geography Yerres lies in the North-Eastern part of ...

after almost a year on the run. A large part of the last five robberies (consisting of cash, gold, jewels and precious stones) was recovered.

Fate of the members or affiliates

* Sidi Mohamed Badaoui, was killed on 28 October 1980. * Bruno Berliner, was killed in the 14 January 1986 robbery. * André Bellaïche, was released in 1997 and now runs three second hand record stores. * Patrick Geay, is still incarcerated. He denies his affiliation with the gang. On 31 October 2006, he was sentenced to 17 years imprisonment by the

Essonne Essonne () is a department in the southern part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. It is named after the river Essonne. In 2019, it had a population of 1,301,659, across 194 communes.Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. * Jean-Claude Myszka was released in 1990, was sentenced to prison again in 2001, before committing suicide in 2003. * Serge Hernout was acquitted, a heroin addict, he was found dead in his home on 8 April 1987.

The return of the ''Gang des postiches''

In 2004, the case of the ''Gang des postiches'' resurfaced when serial killer

Michel Fourniret Michel Paul Fourniret (4 April 1942 – 10 May 2021) was a French serial killer who confessed to killing 12 people in France and Belgium between 1987 and 2003. After he was arrested in June 2003 for the attempted kidnapping of a teenage girl in ...

admitted that he acquired his fortune from the ''Gang des postiches'', when he recovered some of the gold which had been hidden in cemeteries. Fourniret was a former cellmate of Jean-Pierre Hellegouarch (believed to be a treasurer for the gang) whose partner, Farida Hammiche, helped Fourniret recover the gold in 1988. She was subsequently murdered by Fourniret.

In popular culture

*'' Le Dernier Gang'' a movie by

Ariel Zeitoun Ariel Zeitoun (born 26 September 1949) is a French director, producer, and screenwriter. Zeitoun started as a producer in 1979 with '. Later, he wrote the script for and directed '' Souvenirs, souvenirs''. In 2013 Zeitoun directed the historic ...

starring Vincent Elbaz,

Gilles Lellouche Gilles Lellouche (; born 5 July 1972) is a French actor and director. He was nominated twice for a César Award; in 2006 for Most Promising Actor and in 2011 for Best Supporting actor for his performance in '' Little White Lies'' (2010). Earl ...

Sami Bouajila Sami Bouajila (born 26 May 1966) is a Tunisian-French actor who has won two César Awards. Bouajila has worked and acted in two Oscar nominated films ('' Days of Glory'' and '' Outside the Law''), both directed by director Rachid Bouchareb. Earl ...

Clémence Poésy Clémence Guichard (born 30 October 1982), known professionally as Clémence Poésy (), is a French actress and fashion model. After starting on the stage as a child, Poésy studied drama and has been active in both film and television since 19 ...

Pascal Elbé Pascal Elbé (born 13 March 1967) is a French actor, director and screenwriter. Life and career Pascal Elbé was born in Colmar, Haut-Rhin, France, to a family of middle-class Jewish immigrants from Algeria. He was raised in Strasbourg. At 18, ...

. * The last raid inspired

Olivier Marchal Olivier Marchal (born 14 November 1958) is a French actor, director, screenwriter, and a former policeman. In 2005, he was nominated for three César Awards (César Award for Best Director, Best Director, César Award for Best Film, Best Film a ...

for his film ''

''.