The Beatle Bandit, Nate Hendley
The Beatle Bandit, Nate Hendley
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

The Beatle Bandit
A Serial Bank Robber's Deadly Heist, a Cross-Country Manhunt, and the Insanity Plea that Shook the Nation

Author: Nate Hendley

Narrator: David Marantz

Unabridged: 6 hr 14 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 11/23/2021


Synopsis

The sensational true story of how a bank robber killed a man in a wild shootout, sparking a national debate around gun control and the death penalty.

On July 24, 1964, twenty-four-year-old Matthew Kerry Smith disguised himself with a mask and a Beatle wig, hoisted a semi-automatic rifle, then held up a bank in North York, Ontario.

The intelligent but troubled son of a businessman and mentally ill mother, Smith was a navy veteran with a young Indigenous wife and a hazy plan for violent revolution.

Outside the bank, Smith was confronted by Jack Blanc, a former member of the Canadian and Israeli armies, who brandished a revolver. During a wild shootout, Blanc was killed, and Smith escaped—only to become the object of the largest manhunt in the history of the Metropolitan Toronto Police Force.

Dubbed "The Beatle Bandit," Smith was eventually captured, tried, and sentenced to hang. His murderous rampage had tragic consequences for multiple families and fueled a national debate about the death penalty, gun control, and the insanity defense.

About Nate Hendley

Nate Hendley is a journalist and author of several books, primarily on crime-related subjects. His book, The Beatle Bandit (about a murderous 1964 bank heist) won the Crime Writers of Canada Award of Excellence for nonfiction 2022. He lives in Toronto.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Valerity (Val) on September 01, 2021

This is a good Canadian true crime story about a mentally ill young bank robber from back in the early 60s. Matthew Smith had been obsessed with crime since he was a young boy. Once he was old enough to be on his own, he began his criminal career in earnest by planning out and committing bank robber......more

Goodreads review by Ryan on October 22, 2021

The Beatle Bandit by Nate Handley is a comprehensive deep dive into a gun-toting one-man crime spree from 1964 by Matthew Kerry Smith. Due to his bank-robbery attire, Smith was dubbed 'The Beatle Bandit' by the Canadian media, but as a solo artist, Matthew was quite a successful bandit, albeit for a......more

Goodreads review by Gordon on February 14, 2022

In 1964 my father worked on Goddard St, just around the corner from a plaza on Wilmington and Overbrook. A plaza was on the north-east corner with a Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce in it. That year a man disguised in a mask and wearing a "Beatle's" wig robbed the plaza, killing a man in the proce......more

Goodreads review by Jess on September 23, 2022

I was fortunate enough to meet Nate at Fan Expo this summer following the true crime in Toronto panel. I had never heard of the Beatle Bandit case. This was book was well researched, detailed and easy to read. I now plan to pick up Nate's other books.......more

Goodreads review by Madeline on January 20, 2022

I really enjoyed this. This is such a fascinating case in Canadian history, and yet I’ve never heard of it. Even my mom, who was living in North York at the time of the robbery has no memory of this. I find that underrated aspect of it as interesting as the crime itself. This was very well written,......more