USA For 52 years, Ted Conrad lived under an assumed name without anyone knowing the secret. Only when he was about to die of cancer did he reveal his true identity as a bank thief wanted since 1969.
Theodore John "Ted" Conrad began working at the Society National Bank office in Cleveland, Ohio in January 1969. As an employee in charge of the vault, Ted has access to the cash storage area.
During his eight months working here, colleagues considered Ted a model employee, describing him as "tall, handsome and smart".
According to friends, Ted repeatedly said that taking money from Society National bank was easy because of lax security. He was also said to be fascinated by the 1968 film The Thomas Crown Affair, about a wealthy businessman who commits a $2.6 million bank robbery in search of thrills.
Police later suggested that the film may have inspired Ted, who had seen the film several times before the theft.
Silent theft
Friday, July 11, 1969, was the day after Ted's 20th birthday. That afternoon, he had lunch with a close friend, then bought a bottle of whiskey and a cigarette at the liquor store.
Once back at the bank, Ted went into the vault and put stacks of bills totaling $215,000 - the equivalent of $1.8 million today - into a paper grocery bag. He placed the bottle of wine and cigarette on top and calmly left the bank with the money at the end of his working hours.
Ted also stopped to chat with one of the bank's vice presidents for 20 minutes, then blatantly walked through the security area as he left.
Ted stopped by the apartment, packed his things into a small suitcase and took a taxi to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. He then boarded a flight to Washington, D.C. under an assumed name, and never returned.
Two weekends passed, and on Monday morning, when Ted did not appear at the bank as usual, the managers discovered that the money in the vault was missing and reported it to the FBI.
Authorities have searched extensively for the missing vault employee, following clues as far as Hawaii and Australia. In October 1969, a federal arrest warrant was issued, accusing Ted of embezzling bank money and falsifying books, but not charging him with bank robbery because Ted was an employee working inside the vault.
The FBI searches Ted's apartment for evidence. Agents also attended high school reunions in case Ted suddenly appeared.
Ultimately, Ted cut off contact with family and friends. However, immediately after the robbery, he sent several letters to his girlfriend. The postmarks on these letters indicate that Ted was in Washington, D.C. and Inglewood, California.
Letters seized by authorities show Ted believed he could return after the statute of limitations expired. However, Ted did not know that that was no longer true after he had been indicted.
Years passed without news, some relatives even thought Ted was dead.
New clue from anonymous email
The search was at a standstill until November 2, 2021, when Jane Ann Turzillo, a Cleveland crime reporter, received an anonymous email asking if she was still interested in Ted's story. Jane replied "yes", then the emailer provided the obituary of Thomas Randele, a Massachusetts man who died in early 2021 at the age of 73.
At first, the name Thomas Randele did not attract the female reporter's attention, but then she noticed some strange similarities between Thomas and Ted. Both were born in Denver, had the same birthday but different years, both attended New England College, had parents named Edward and Ruthabeth, and both mothers' maiden names were Krueger.
Digging deeper, Jane discovered photos of a young Thomas on Facebook that looked surprisingly similar to Ted. The female reporter contacted the investigator in charge of the case. They compared Thomas' signature on the 2014 bankruptcy filing with documents Ted had signed in the 1960s and found similarities.
To determine for sure, investigators went to the Thomas family in the suburbs of Boston.
Reveal the mystery
At Thomas's house, the Judicial Police were told by his wife and children about his deathbed confession.
In May 2021, Thomas passed away from lung cancer. A month before his death, he revealed a shocking secret to his wife, Kathy, and daughter, Ashley. "When I moved here, I had to change my name. The authorities may still be looking for me," Thomas said.
At first Ashley thought her father was joking. But after he reluctantly revealed his real name as "Ted Conrad," she began searching the Internet. What appeared shocked her.
The name Ted Conrad is associated with a 1969 bank heist, a decades-long search and the image of a 20-year-old man who has appeared on shows like America's Most Wanted and Unsolved Mysteries.
Ashley then let her mother read the online articles she found. Mrs. Kathy was completely unaware that her husband was Ted Conrad, a fugitive for more than 50 years. Ashley said her mother kept saying "Oh my God" when reading information about Ted.
Mother and son planned to wait a year after Thomas died before reporting to law enforcement because Thomas wanted them to keep it a secret.
Authorities confirmed that Thomas Randele is Theodore John "Ted" Conrad. Through investigation, a chain of events was pieced together.
In early 1970, about 6 months after the theft, Ted went to Boston, obtained a new social security number using the false identity "Thomas Randele", declaring his age to be 2 years older than he actually was. With new documents, Thomas can open a bank account, build a credit history and start a completely different life.
From then on, Thomas lived quietly. During the 1970s, Thomas worked at a golf club near Boston, rising from assistant professional to manager. After that, he moved into the luxury car business.
In 1982, Thomas married Kathy and had daughter Ashley.
When the Judiciary Police announced the closure of the case on November 12, 2021, Thomas's friends were astonished to learn the truth about the polite family man, friendly with local police and fond of watching crime TV shows. But they also belatedly realized some strange things from before, such as the fact that Thomas often wore dark glasses, always had a beard and never talked about where he grew up, his parents or siblings.
But there is one big question that the authorities cannot answer. The $215,000 that Ted took from the bank disappeared with him.
Ashley later suggested that his father might not have just run away for money. During the process of researching the story, she realized that the theft could be related to her desire to leave her old life and start over, instead of simply wanting to become rich.
According to investigators, Thomas's family was also a victim in the incident. "He seemed relieved to finally let go of the burden in his heart. But I was devastated. It felt like we didn't have time to understand everything before he left," Ashley shared.
