The Good Bandit true story

The Good Bandit, new film starring Channing Tatum e Kirsten Dunstarrived in Brazilian cinemas this Thursday (16) bringing the fascinating story of a criminal who spent months hiding from the police inside a toy store in the interior of the USA – but did you know that this plot is inspired by facts?

O Omelet rescued the real story of Jeffrey Manchester next – check it out!

Who was Jeffrey Mancheter, the “roof robber”?

Born in the interior of California (USA), in 1971, Jeffrey Allen Manchester served in the US army during his youth, being part of the prestigious 82nd Aeronautical Division and working at the Concord Naval Weapons Base, in his home state.

He married at age 20, and had three children, but the union dissolved less than a decade later. Manchester briefly worked at a McDonald’s unit, a franchise that would become his main target for robberies from November 1998 onwards.

The “roof robber”, as he became known, followed a way of working rigorous: days of meticulous observation to learn the establishment’s routine, before breaking into the store at night, opening a hole in the roof and waiting for the first employees to arrive in the morning. Manchester then held them at gunpoint, forcing them into the establishment’s freezer while he stole the cash registers and fled.

The story of the “roof robber” gained prominence at the time also due to the criminal’s “polite” behavior during the robberies – the scene at the beginning of The Good Bandit is very typical of reports about Manchester, including his insistence that employees wear coats before entering the freezer.

In 2000, however, Manchester’s luck ran out. He was captured by police while trying to recover his car after a robbery, as one of the McDonald’s employees he had robbed had set off the store’s silent alarm.

How did Jeffrey Manchester escape from prison? And how long did he spend at Toys R’ Us?

Manchester’s escape from Brown Creek Correctional Institution in North Carolina took place exactly as The Good Bandit show.

After meticulously observing the prison routine, the inmate built a wooden sign painted black, which he placed on the underside of a truck to support himself and hide from the guards’ inspection. He got out of the truck on the side of the road and picked up rides until he arrived in the city of Charlotte.

His escape from Manchester took place in June 2004, and he took up residence in a Toys R’ Us franchise store shortly after arriving in the city. Manchester spent his days hiding in back rooms and unused areas of the store, and went out at night to exercise and steal food (baby food and snacks children).

What the film does not show is the “change” of the criminal, who left Toys R’ Us during the Christmas period to live next door, in a disused unit of Circuit City (a common electronics store in the USA). It was during this period that he joined Crossroads Presbyterian Church and met Leigh Wainscottwith whom he started a relationship.

On December 26, 2004, Manchester committed his last robbery – capturing Toys R’ Us employees and trying to escape with the money from the safe, but being prevented by the arrival of the police, called by two people who managed to escape from the store. The incident led police to discover his “headquarters” in Circuit City, and find his fingerprint on a DVD of Garment-me Se For Capable.

Where is Jeffrey Manchester today? When was he arrested?

As shown in the film, Manchester was captured answering a call from Leigh and going to her house – although it was not on Christmas Day, as is the case in The Good Banditand yes in early January 2005. The police convinced Wainscott to participate in the trap after revealing to her all of Manchester’s lies, from his false name to his “top secret government job”.

Sentenced to 40 years in prison, the “roof robber” is currently serving his sentence in Raleigh Central Prison, North Carolina. He tried to escape two other times, in 2009 and 2017, but was unsuccessful – his release date is set for 2036.

The Good Banditdirected by Derek Cianfrance (Valentine Forever), stars Channing Tatum (as Manchester), Kirsten Dunst (as Wainscott), Ben Mendelsohn, Aduba Road, Peter Dinklage e Juno Temple. The film is showing in Brazilian cinemas.