Great Train Robbery: How 15-Member Gang Stole 50 Million Pounds In 30 Mins

Bobby Welch, the last member of the gang that committed the Great Train Robbery, one of Britain's most notorious crimes, has died from natural causes. According to LBC, Welch was sentenced to 30 years in prison after the robbery in 1963, though was released in 1976. He underwent a leg surgery that went wrong and left him wheelchair-bound. The heist involved the hijack of a London-bound train and the theft of millions of pounds. According to British outlets, the thieves stole more than 2.6 million pounds - equivalent to 50 million in today's money. Most of the cash was never recovered.

Sixty years after the crime, here's a look at that happened.

What was the Great Train Robbery?

According to Encyclopaedia Britannica, it was a heist carried out by a 15-member gang on Glasgow-London Royal Mail Train on August 8, 1963.

The train was robbed near the Bridego Bridge, north of London. The gang wearing helmets, ski masks and gloves changed the green track signal to red using batteries, bringing the train to a halt.

Both the driver and the co-driver were attacked and knocked unconscious.

The gang fled the scene within 30 minutes, taking 130 sacks with them.

Who was involved in the Great Train Robbery?

The Evening Standard reported that the gang comprised of thieves, crooks and conspirers. After the Scotland Yard took charge of the case, 12 of the 15 robbers were arrested and sent to jail.

Most famous among the gang members was Ronnie Biggs, who escaped from London's Wandsworth prison in 1965.

Bruce Reynolds planned the robbery and, as a result, has become one of the most notorious criminals in British history, the outlet further said.

How the criminals were caught?

As per Encyclopaedia Britannica, the robbers took the sacks to a farmhouse in Land Rovers where they divided the loot. They then hired six thieves to burn down the farmhouse, but they did a poor job that the police found a lot of fingerprints.

Armed with other evidence, the police arrested the dozen men who were sent the prison. Biggs, who escaped, later altered his face by plastic surgery and fled to Paris, then to Australia and finally to Brazil.

In 2001 Biggs returned to the United Kingdom and was rearrested.

What happened to the robbers?

Biggs died in December 2013 at a care home in East Barnet, London, The Evening Standard report said.

After being released from prison, Reynolds published 'Autobiography of a Thief' in 1995. He died in February 2013.

Another gang member Ronald Edwards too was released after a few years and started selling flowers outside Waterloo station. He was found hanging in 1994.