Police: Notorious Canadian bank robber stole $900 in booze in Barrington
A man known as the Phantom Bandit, one of the most notorious bank robbers in Canadian history, is behind bars in the Lake County jail accused of trying to steal more than $900 in liquor from a downtown Barrington grocery store.
Gilbert Galvan, 58, also at times dubbed “The Flying Bandit,” faces four counts of felony retail theft stemming from his arrest early Monday morning at a Jewel-Osco store, Barrington Police Chief David Dorn said.
Dorn said police were called to the store after an employee noticed a man believed to have stolen liquor from the business a few days earlier walking through the aisles with a cart. When the man left the store with liquor and didn't pay, Dorn said, an officer arrested him in the parking lot.
After police identified him as Galvan, Dorn said, he quickly admitted to being the “Phantom Bandit.”
Dorn said Galvan was released from federal prison in December after serving 15 years for bank robbery. In 2001, Galvin, then living in Wisconsin, was arrested in McHenry on charges he robbed the Bank One at 4300 W. Elm St.
Before that arrest, though, Galvan served a 20-year prison sentence for stealing more than $1.8 million from about 50 banks and for robbing jewelry stores of more than $1.8 million between 1984 and 1987, according to an Associated Press report. The report also states Galvan escaped from a St. Joseph County, Michigan, prison in 1984 with eight years left on an embezzlement sentence.
He ran to Ontario, Canada, assumed the name of Robert Lee Whiteman, and robbed banks in 14 Canadian cities, the archived story said. He was captured after three years and given another 20-year prison term, the reports said.
Galvan became famous in 2005 after the television show “Masterminds” devoted an entire episode to him, saying he would rob banks and then “disappear” like a phantom.
Galvan, who faces charges stemming from thefts Monday as well as May 9 at the Barrington Jewel, is due back in court June 1 for a preliminary hearing, said Cynthia Vargas of the Lake County state's attorney's office. He remains held on $50,000 bail.