“Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist” is a riveting true-crime documentary that you should see. Viewers learn about Argentina’s historic 2006 bank robbery from the culprits themselves through straightforward interviews. The plot of the movie centres on a bunch of thieves who successfully robbed a bank in Buenos Aires, held 23 prisoner, and then made their getaway through a complex tunnel and safe system beneath the building. The scheme was foiled a few weeks after the robbery when Beto de la Torre, one of the criminals, was apprehended by investigators after his wife assisted the authorities.
Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist is the next crime documentary on Netflix, but as the storyline develops, viewers are wondering if it’s based on a true tale. On August 6, the documentary is scheduled to be released on the streaming service. It tells the tale of how and why a gang of guys committed the largest bank heist in Argentina.
How the most well-known bank heist in Argentina was carried out is shown in the documentary film directed by Matas Gueilburt and produced by Sebastián Gamba and Julian Rousso, the team behind Vilas: You will be what you should be or you will be nothing and The days of Ayotzinapa.
A group of guys stormed into a bank in Buenos Aires in 2006, grabbed 23 hostages, stole valuables from safes, and then just fled. After their successful escape, an ex-wife of one of the thieves turns against the criminals, changing the course of the narrative.
This incredible Netflix crime documentary is also based on a true incident, but it has a lot more drama and information. At the centre of the crime were Ruben de la Torre, also known as “Beto,” Sebastian Garcia Bolster, Julian Zalloecheverria, Fernando Araujo, and Mario Luis Vitette Sellanes; however, it is believed that two other people participated in it but were never convicted.
A bank robbery was in process when police received the report at 12:38 on January 13, 2006. A short while later, police were rushing into San Isidro, a posh enclave to the north of Buenos Aires. The robbers were still inside when police arrived at the site, which was a tan, two-story branch of Banco Ro, one of the country’s major banking institutions.
The bank’s only security guard walked out the door while holding his revolver as authorities set up a perimeter. Before allowing the guard to go, the thieves had empty the firearm and put its rounds in his pocket. He said there were captives inside, and ten minutes later one of them, a young, tense man, was freed. Soon after that, a robber in a mask with a woman in his arms showed up at the door.
The robber left the woman free and fled back inside the bank when he saw the gathered police officers. Five robbers who had entered the bank using different disguises were now locked inside with 23 hostages. Police were swarming the streets outside, and they soon made radio contact with one of the thieves, who went by the name of Walter. Walter claimed that although the burglars were aware of their surroundings, they weren’t yet prepared to give up. The cops should remain in the background until they are. Nobody desired the return of Ramallo.
This touched a raw nerve. Argentina was well-known for the Ramallo town theft. Three armed guys had broken into another bank nearby six years previously. As on this day, the criminals held captives and used them as shields while attempting to flee. That’s when everything started to go wrong. A robber and two hostages were killed when police started shooting. Ramallo was a widespread scandal, but the fact that it occurred live on television added to its terribleness.
More than 100 police officers encircled the bank and sealed off the surrounding streets as the TV cameras returned to San Isidro. Photographers or snipers took any perch with a view of the bank that was open.
The country was in complete awe for more than six hours. Walter was known as “the Man in the Gray Suit” by the police. He attained overnight fame. Walter said that the captives were receiving excellent care. The atmosphere inside looked strangely upbeat; at one point, Walter and a companion robber were heard singing “Happy Birthday” to a bank employee whose phone had been vibrating with greetings from friends and relatives. At 3:30 in the afternoon, Walter requested pizzas, claiming that the hostages were starving. A little while afterwards, Walter stopped speaking.
Police chiefs and city representatives agonised over what to do for more than three hours while more attempts to contact Walter proved unsuccessful.
Finally, a group of special forces soldiers positioned themselves in front of the bank. They barged in at seven o’clock. However, there was no gunfight or uproar. And the thieves left no trace. The hostages were spread out over three stories, including the lobby level, a mezzanine area, and a conference room in the basement that had been secured from the inside. They weren’t hurt at all.
Detectives did not learn the true goal of the criminals until they entered the basement. There, throughout the length of the bank’s underground floor, were hundreds of safe deposit boxes made of reinforced steel. And in 2006, such crates were a true treasure trove in a location like San Isidro.
Argentines have a special mistrust for their banks and with good cause. They have consistently deceived them most notably in 2001, when the corralito, or collapse of the national financial system, caused millions to lose everything. Bank clients started storing their savings—cash, jewelry, and other valuables—in safe-deposit boxes as they lost trust in accounts. And this specific bank, located in one of Argentina’s wealthiest neighborhoods, must have sounded especially alluring, as its safe deposit boxes were guaranteed to be filled with the fortunes of the city’s most affluent residents.
Of the 400 boxes at the bank, 143 had been broken into and cleared empty by the criminals. But it was unclear exactly what they had taken and where they had gone. Cops searched every square inch of the bank’s three levels, but they were unable to find a single gang member. There were only two exits from the bank, and since the siege started, police had blocked both of them. The windows of the structure were all intact. Furthermore, the thieves were not concealed among the captives. They had just disappeared.
The robbers left a few items behind. A battery pack, a tool they believe was used to open the boxes, a line of toy weapons neatly arranged on the floor, and a letter posted to the wall above the toys were all discovered by the detectives. “In a neighbourhood of affluent people, without guns or grudges, it’s simply money, not love,” was scribbled, and it must have appeared taunting.
Everyone involved had a bizarre day since the thieves left fake pistols behind and bought pizza and soft drinks for the hostages while singing happy birthday to a lawyer. Despite being encircled by 200 police officers, the criminals were able to go unharmed; it was as if they had disappeared. The two criminals inside the bank utilised the tunnel entrance to travel to an underground sewage system, where an accomplice was waiting for them on a boat. It turns out, however, that the robbers pulled off a complete Shawshank Redemption and made their getaway.
After the heist, it appeared as though the men would escape with nothing until one of them’s personal problems brought the whole scheme to an end. Beto informed his wife how he acquired his half of the wealth at the time and how he got it (rookie mistake), and they clashed when he felt some of it was gone, he told GQ.
Beto’s wife eventually took him down by turning him in to the police, and she was able to identify four of the other guys since she had seen them before. Beto was ultimately discovered with his girlfriend in a car.
Where to Watch Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022)?
Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022) will be premiering on Netflix on August 6, 2022. We do not recommend illegal streaming and always suggest paying for the content you like to watch.
Is Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022) available on Amazon Prime?
Amazon prime will not be streaming Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022). Additionally, several other films are streaming on Prime. Our recommendations are The Voyagers, It’s a Wonderful Life, Notting Hill, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
Is Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022) available on HBO Max?
HBO Max will not be streaming Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022). However, HBO’s subscribers can enjoy its other popular streams like Euphoria, When Harry Met Sally and Promising Young Woman.
Is Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022) available on Hulu?
Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022) is not available on Hulu. The new release line-up additionally includes Pam and Tommy, How I Met Your Father, Abbott Elementary, and Vikings.
Is Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022) available on Netflix?
Bank Robbers: The Last Great Heist (2022) will not be available to stream on Netflix. However, other brilliant shows like The Power of The Dog, The Social Network, Tick, Tick, Boom, and much more are available.