Former MIT Professor Robs Bank, Cites Rimbaud as Influence

January 15, 2015

Inspired by the French poet Arthur Rimbaud—who died over a century ago—former MIT professor Joseph Gibbons, 61, robbed a Capital One bank (his second such heist!) in New York. As he made off with $1,000, Gibbons filmed the entire crime with a camcorder.

“I read the works of Arthur Rimbaud, who essentially believed a poet had to descend into the depths of all that was bad and report back,” he said to the NY Post. “This whole thing has been one long project about discovering the disenfranchised portions of society.”

Gibbons was quickly apprehended and charged after a former student turned him in. Reportedly, his cellmates admired him.

“He was doing research for a film,” said cellmate Kaylan Sherrard, 27. “It’s not crime; it’s artwork... He’s an intellectual.”

Gibbons claimed that he carried out his first bank robbery in mid-November in Providence, RI, by handing what he thought was a humorous note demanding money for a church to a terrified teller, which failed to receive the media attention he desired.

“I tried to make it a funny note, something to get it on the news,” he said. “The upsetting thing...was that the teller was jolted by the note. It really upset her.”

Gibbons allegedly successfully made off with $3,000, which police are now investigating.

The former visual arts and film professor said he had no regrets and wasn’t concerned about the prospect of doing hard time. “This latest project is akin to ‘bank robbing for dummies,’” he said, adding that he expected to receive probation.

Judge Abraham Clott set bail at $50,000 for the New York robbery, after finding Gibbons mentally sound.

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