Qualla: 1973 Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Bank Robbery

1973 Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Bank Robbery: Introduction

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

He checked into the Kenricia Hotel on April 23, 1973, under the name Paul Higgins, giving an address that turned out to be fictitious. He left a steamer trunk at the hotel, took a bus to Winnipeg, and returned on May 5. Five days later, wearing a black balaclava mask and carrying a rifle, a pistol, and a homemade bomb made from six sticks of dynamite, he walked into the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce in Kenora, Ontario. He held a dead man's switch clenched between his teeth. The robbery that followed lasted only minutes, ended in an explosion on the street outside, and left behind a mystery that remains unsolved more than fifty years later.

1973 Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Bank Robbery: Six Sticks and a Dead Man's Switch

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The man demanded that his shoulder bag and three duffel bags be filled with money. Inside the bank, police were already mobilizing. Constable Don Millard of the local force volunteered for an extraordinary assignment: he would pose as a getaway truck driver to get the robber outs...

1973 Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Bank Robbery: The Man Called Paul Higgins

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The bomber's wallet yielded a pair of handcuff keys, 176 dollars, and a receipt from the Kenricia Hotel. The name and address he had given at check-in -- Paul Higgins, with a Toronto street address -- led nowhere. The remains of Old Port, Dutch Prince, and Teuros-Havanas cigars w...

1973 Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Bank Robbery: An Unmarked Grave in Kenora Cemetery

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The unidentified man was buried in an unmarked grave in Kenora Cemetery, where he remains. The case has drawn periodic attention over the decades. CTV News documentary program W5 profiled the robbery in 1983 and revisited it in 2023, digging for new clues. Joe Ralko, the teenager...

1973 Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Bank Robbery: A Small Town's Extraordinary Day

Thu, 05 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Kenora is a small city of roughly 15,000 people on the north shore of Lake of the Woods in northwestern Ontario. It is a place better known for fishing, cottage country, and the Canadian wilderness than for violent crime. The 1973 bank robbery shattered that quiet in spectacular ...