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Land, Indigenous peoples, settlers, and today’s communities.

Since time immemorial, Ancestors of the people called K’ómoks today consisting of the Pentlatch, Ieeksan (eye-ick-sun), Sasitla (sa-seet-la), Xa’xe (ha-hey) and Sathloot (sath-loot) people have been the caretakers of this land, which they called the “Land of Plenty.” This Land of Plenty stretched from what is known today as Kelsey Bay in the north, down to Hornby and Denman Island in the south, and included the watershed and estuary of the Puntledge River, also acknowledging that these boundaries and place names are colonial constructs.

The K’ómoks First Nation refer to the lands between the bays of Comox and the Beaufort mountain range as the path between, it was a travel and trade route to the Alberni corridor and a connection to the indigenous communities on the western side of the island.

Land agreements included the 1884 Settlement Act stripped these lands for its caretakers. At the Museum we acknowledge that we are a colonial created institution, and I would like to thank Charlene Everson, Emily Shopland and Violet Williams for guiding the museum in early discussion on what reconciliation could mean for our organization and how we could create actionable steps; in maintaining a positive dialogue with a forward focus, sharing contemporary K’omoks narratives, and incorporating First Nation languages where they felt it appropriate. Their time and guidance helped us gain insight and learn how to best support their voice in our museum’s walls. This is an ongoing process and we have so much more to learn.

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C004-023
Revolver used during robbery (983.056.029)
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Story • 6 Min read
Community

Hold ‘Em Up!

This is a Robbery!

It’s Tuesday morning on December 1st, 1981.

A gentle breeze drifts down Dunsmuir Avenue in Cumberland. The snow has yet to start flying, but it’s cold. The few people who dart between the street stores are bundled up in big jackets; hands tucked firmly in their pockets, chins pressed to their chest to protect their necks, and ears nestled under their woolen hats to stop them turning pink.

Wood smoke hangs in the air, clinging to the buildings as each home’s chimney steadily billows into the morning in hope of keeping the children warm while they get ready for school.

It’s a typical midwinter morning in the village of Cumberland.

A white Ford Cougar car comes to a steady halt on Dunsmuir Avenue outside the Royal Bank, it's tires crunch over the grit and sand that dusts the road.

It’s rough around the edges. The wheel wells are rusted, the seats are torn, and it coughs a couple times when you start it up in the morning, but it’s reliable.

The best thing about it though? It looks the part. A car fit for a villain or three.

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Royal Bank exterior (983.056.011)

The doors screech open, the hinges haven’t been oiled in years, and the doors slam shut. Three young men stand on the sidewalk.

Two of them are brothers, Daniel and David. The third, Steven, is a close friend of the pair.

They aren’t here for a holiday.

They’re here to rob the bank.

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Royal Bank interior, front lobby (983.056.012)

The three men walk swiftly down the sidewalk, hands deep in their pockets, keeping their heads down so that no-one gets a good look at them, they make their way to the bank.

They ascend the steps; David taking them two at a time, Steven shuffling up fast and anxiously, and Daniel taking each one at a steady calculated pace; cool, calm, collected.

With a brief glance and nod of encouragement to one another, they each pull on their stocking masks.

Daniel pushes open the door and the three of them step over the threshold and into the lobby.

The hold up takes less than two minutes.

They’ve rehearsed it dozens of times. Daniel pulls a long-barrelled .44 Magnum Ruger revolver from his belt, and holds it aloft.

“This is a robbery!” were the words that most likely escaped him as he brandished his gun. He then demands the tellers to step away from their wickets and back up against the wall.

Everyone is in shock. You hear about these kinds of things on the news, read them in books, watch them on television, but they don’t happen around here? Well today, they do.

David and Steven move in, marching forward toward the horrified tellers. Overcome with terror they freeze, doing exactly what Daniel instructs them to as he bellows orders from the lobby floor.

C004-023
Revolver used during robbery (983.056.029)

Thankfully, Elaine Hart is working today. Sat quietly in her Branch managerial office, she doesn’t panic when she hears the commotion out front. Instead she keeps a low profile, not out of fear, but so she can sound the silent alarm; alerting the police down in Courtenay that the bank was being robbed, and avoid any harm coming to herself or the staff.

Unaware that their cover has been blown, David and Steven snatch $8,000 dollars from a teller and quickly make a dash for the door. Daniel follows them, with the trio hurtling out onto Dunsmuir Avenue and sprinting back to the getaway car.

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Stolen money in plastic bag (983.056.035)

With the turn of the key, and a squeal of the tires, the Ford Cougar accelerated down Dunsmuir Avenue and headed towards Royston…

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White get-away car (983.056.024)

Fifteen minutes passed…

Nothing…

Then sirens pierced the air and the police arrived at the scene.

After realizing the severity of the robbery, they wasted no-time in launching a man-hunt that swept the length and breadth of the Comox Valley, searching for the trio of thieves in every nook and cranny.

The police swiftly set up roadblocks, tracking down the thieves' abandoned getaway car on Union Road. The trio had fled in such haste that the hot-wired vehicle was still gently idling with a dulcet rattle coming from the exhaust, with one door left ajar.

They’d been smart though, no traces of their escapades were left behind and the police were left empty handed. The search intensified.

A desperate call for public assistance crackled over the airwaves of local radio station CFCP.

A keen-eyed witness phoned in, recounting a suspicious sighting of a second vehicle parked alongside the Cougar that morning. With this fresh lead, police took to the skies in a hired helicopter, scanning the landscape below. Their bird's-eye view revealed the suspect vehicle hiding behind a house on the Royston-Cumberland Road.

As they descended for a closer look, figures darted back inside, like rabbits into their burrows. Within seconds, a convoy of police cars converged on the house, owned by a relative of one of the suspects.

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Aerial photograph of robbers’ hideout (983.056.017)

The net was closing in.

Inside, police apprehended the trio of thieves and seized a cache of handguns, including the menacing Magnum. A meticulous search of the premises uncovered a burning barrel, its contents still smoldering - masks, gloves, and tattered clothing fragments - relics of the brazen holdup.

A police search dog and ident section combed the scene, gathering every shred of evidence. As the darkness of the day closed in, one of the suspects cracked in hope of saving the trio from time behind bars and revealed the location of the hidden stash of stolen cash - beneath a board in the yard, waiting to be unearthed once free from danger.

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Revolver found inside the hideout (983.056.029)

Their cover blown, their hands in cuffs, their cash seized, the men were placed behind bars.

On March 23rd in Victoria, Steven and David were sentenced to three years in prison for robbery, following their guilty pleas on February 15th in Courtenay County Court. Meanwhile, Daniel received a three-year sentence for robbery, plus an additional consecutive one-year term for using a firearm during the commission of an indictable offense, resulting in a total of four years behind bars.