bsite. Protocols Chapter 2 The Willie Sutton Story Willie Sutton became famous in the 1930s for a series of outrageous rob- beries during which he managed to outwit the police at every turn. Dur- ing his career he had two nicknames, "The Actor" and "Slick Willie," because of his ingenious tendency to use a wide array of disguises during his robberies. A sucker for expensive clothes, Sutton was an immaculate dresser. Although he was a bank robber, he had the reputation of being a gentleman; in fact, people who witnessed his robberies stated he was quite polite. One teller remembers him coming into the bank dressed to the nines carrying flowers, which he presented to her in exchange for her money. Another victim said Sutton's robberies were like attending the movies, except that the usher had a gun. On February 15, 1933, Sutton and an accomplice attempted to rob the Corn Exchange Bank and Trust Company in Philadelphia, Pennsylva- nia. Sutton, disguised as a mailman, entered the bank early in the morn- ing, but a suspicious passerby caused them to abort the robbery. Roughly a year later, however, on January 15, 1934, he entered the same bank through a ceiling skylight. When the guard arrived, Sutton forced him to admit the employees, whom Sutton handcuffed and locked in a small back room. Sutton also robbed a Broadway jewelry store in broad daylight, dressed as a telegraph messenger. His other disguises included a police- man, special delivery messenger, and maintenance man. Sutton was caught in June of 1931 and sentenced to 30 years in prison. He escaped on December 11, 1932 by climbing a prison wall. Two years later he was recaptured and sentenced to serve 25 to 50 years in Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia, for the robbery of the Corn Exchange Bank. Sutton's career was not over yet, however. On April 3, 1945, Sutton was one of 12 convicts who escaped from Eastern State through a tunnel. He was recaptured the same day by Philadelphia police officers and sen- tenced to life imprisonment as a fourth-time offe