Postcard Bandit’s case dropped by police after almost 30 years later

Almost 30 years after taking out a warrant for the arrest of Brenden Abbott in connection with the holdup of a Glenelg bank, police have made a surprise move.

Australia’s most notorious bank robber and prison escapee, Brenden James Abbott, is a step closer to freedom with a significant barrier to his eventual release on parole being removed.

The Advertiser can reveal SA police have withdrawn a warrant for his arrest in connection with a 1994 Glenelg bank robbery in which more than $100,000 was stolen.

The quashing of the warrant in Adelaide Magistrates Court on Friday came just over a fortnight after the serial armed robber and prison escapee, dubbed the Postcard Bandit, formally asked for its withdrawal so he can become eligible for day leave from prison in WA to assist his possible release on parole.

Abbott, who is now 60 and has spent almost 40 years in prison, in June 2021 asked WA authorities to transfer him to SA to deal with the warrant, but this did not occur and he remains in a high security wing of the Casuarina Prison in Perth.

Brenden James Abbott at Woodford Prison in 1998.

Last month his sister Dianne, son James and several supporters formally asked SA Attorney-General Kyam Maher to address the warrant issue – unaware that SA police were already doing so following a review of the case file by senior detectives and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

The review came to the conclusion that prosecuting Abbott over the bank heist - which netted $118,639 - would be unsuccessful because of the passage of time.

The 1994 Glenelg bank robbery was one of 18 Abbott and unknown accomplices are suspected of carrying out in SA while he was on the run after escaping from prison in WA in late 1989. Nationally, police suspect Abbott netted several million dollars from the dozens of heists he carried out with little of that ever recovered.

During the SA bank robbery spree detectives believe Abbott and an accomplice were flying into Adelaide from interstate for many of the raids. The initial robberies involved ram-raids on banks to gain entry, but Abbott’s tactics evolved and he then targeted banks as ATMs were being refilled and finally opted for a more covert and less spectacular method - breaking into the bank building undetected, hiding in the ceiling and then dropping through when staff had arrived and unlocked the vault.

Detective Snr Sgt Sid Thomas at the Sturt police Station.

Retired SA police Detective Senior Sergeant Sid Thomas, who initiated and co-ordinated the national operation that was instrumental in recapturing Abbott, said he was not surprised at the move.

“It is disappointing it has been withdrawn considering there were opportunities to have him face court here, but it appears there was little choice after so long,’’ the veteran Detective said.

“He was identified as an offender by several of the victims in the bank who were obviously traumatised after being threatened with a firearm.’’

In their detailed letter to Mr Maher Abbott’s family and supporters, who include a former WA Detective involved in the manhunt for Abbott, an armed robbery victim and the author of two books on him, state the outstanding warrant was “impacting on Abbott’s security classification and rehabilitation, through ineligibility for a prerelease program for long-term prisoners.’’

“It is our understanding that under the Interstate Prisoner Transfer Act, this matter sits with the Attorney-General but your predecessors have seemed reluctant, unwilling or hesitant in their own capacity to make a decision,’’ they state.

“Seventeen years later, despite continuing to actively petition authorities across WA, SA and Queensland to be sent to Adelaide to face the outstanding charge, there is still no decision on whether this warrant will be quashed or executed …”

Abbott (alias Brendan) inside a helicopter after leaving Darwin Magistrates Court.

Abbott is serving a 16 year prison sentence in WA, 10 of them for an aggravated armed robbery in Perth in 1987 and the remainder for escaping custody.

After escaping the now-decommissioned Fremantle Prison by dressing as a guard in November 1989, Abbott remained on the run until 1995 when he was arrested in Queensland and jailed for crimes including armed robbery in that state.

During the six-year period he was on the run Abbott and several accomplices are suspected of committing dozens of bank robberies across Australia – netting millions in cash, the majority of which has never been recovered.

It was during this spree that Abbott earned the nickname the Postcard Bandit – after police discovered photographs of him and an accomplice posing in front of a police station displaying a wad of cash.

A picture of Brenden Abbott in December 1989.

Abbott spectacularly escaped with three other inmates from Brisbane’s Sir David Longland Correctional Facility in November 1997, but was recaptured in the Northern Territory and returned to prison in Queensland in May 1998 – with more time added to his original sentence.

He was arrested by WA police after being granted parole in Queensland April 2016 and unsuccessfully fought his extradition to WA.

Abbott’s jail term runs until 2033, but he will be eligible for parole in 2026. He is eligible for day release under the WA Correctional Services reintegration leave program in July 2025 – provided he is not subject to charges in any other jurisdiction.

The program enables long-term prisoners to leave the prison under the supervision of an approved sponsor for set periods of time. The leave enables offenders who have spent a long period in custody to re-establish family and community relationships to assist their transition when they are released.

In his June 2021 letter to WA Attorney-General John Quigley Abbott also stated allowing SA police to extradite him and prosecute him for the 1994 Glenelg bank robbery after he completed his WA sentence would be an abuse of process, citing SA Supreme Court case law.

In their letter to Mr Maher last month Abbott’s family and supporters state he “has paid his debt to society.’’

“…. he is entitled to the prospect of rehabilitation and the opportunity to productively live out the remainder of his life with his family,’’ they state in the letter.

“We ask that without further delay, you consider the extensive legal argument Abbott has made to your predecessors and interstate counterparts and deliver the decision owed to him…”