The Robbery
On August 22, 1972, Naturile attempted to rob branch of the Chase Manhattan bank on the corner of East Third Street and Avenue P in Gravesend, Brooklyn; the robbery was led by John Wojtowicz and Robert Westenberg. Westenberg was unnerved by a police car on the street and fled the scene before the robbery was underway. Wojtowicz and Naturile then held seven Chase Manhattan bank employees hostage for fourteen hours. Wojtowicz, a former bank teller, had some knowledge of bank operations. However, Wojtowicz had apparently based his plan on scenes from the movie The Godfather, which he had seen earlier that day.
Before the robbery, Naturile had informed Wojtowicz and Westenberg that he would rather die than go back to prison. He was seen by the police on the scene as nervous, highly strung and volatile and they feared that the more pressure that was put on Naturile and Wojtowicz would cause them to be frightened and unbalanced and impossible to negotiate with on reasonable terms. He was the only one of the three bank robbers who had a previous criminal record. During the robbery he was dressed in a black business suit and tie and carried an attache case. His last meal consisted of takeout pizza and soda pop which they ate during their holdout at the bank with the hostages. The robbery was meant to fund the sex reassignment operation of John's wife. Naturile's share was to finance his two sisters' removal from foster care and separation from their mother, who drank and neglected all three of her children.
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