โ Scribed by Machell, Ben
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
*The remarkable true story of a modern-day Robin Hood: a British college student who started robbing banks as the financial crisis unfolded.*
When the signs of an impending global financial crisis became clear in 2007, socially isolated British college student Stephen Jackley decided to take a stand by becoming a bank robber, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor. Against all likelihood, his plan actually worked. Jackley used disguises, elaborate escape routes, and fake guns to hold up a string of banks, making off with thousands of pounds. He attempted ten robberies in Southwest England over a six-month period. After Jackley successfully hid his loot high up in the trees of nearby parks, bank notes marked "RH"--for Robin Hood--began finding their way into the hands of the homeless. Motivated by a belief that global capitalism was ruining lives and driving the planet towards ecological disaster, he dreamed of changing the world for the better through his crimes. The police, despite their concerted efforts, had no idea what was going on or who was responsible. That is, until Jackley's ambition got the better of him.
Eventually agreeing to return to his native Britain after an arrest on American soil, Jackley wrote of his fears for the world, humanity "standing on the brink of massive change," detailing his deeply revealing, morally complex motivations for the robberies. It was only later that psychiatric evaluation revealed that, unbeknownst to everybody, Stephen had been living with undiagnosed Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Woven throughout the narrative are entries from Jackley's diaries, lending an intense intimacy and urgency to the story and shedding light on Stephen's mental state and the challenges he faced in his own mind and beyond.
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