Robberies are up, robberies are down. Why is anyone's guess

摘要

Arecent Massachusetts bank robber did not require the lat-est anti-theft technology: computer chips in cash sacks that use global positioning satellite (GPS) sensors to track thieves right to their door. In a twisted, modern version of the Hansel and Gretel fairytale, the spaced-out thief obligingly trailed wrappers from the fist-full of hospitality candies he had also taken, all the way back home. The story, from Daniel Forte, chief executive of the Massachusetts Bankers Association, touches on sev- eral aspects of the debate on what causes and solves the problem of bank robbery. The thief in question was a drug addict—as are over half of bank robbers, says ABA's Associate Director of Public Relations, John Hall.