Brinks Robbery Mastermind Denied Parole

Mutulu Shakur, the mastermind of the bloody $1.6 million Brinks robbery, has been denied parole.

Nyack Police Officer Waverly Brown and Sgt. Edward O’Grady were gunned down by members of the Black Liberation Army near the New York State Thruway entrance in 1981 after the armored car heist in Nanuet. Peter Paige, a Brinks security guard, also lost his life in the incident.

Rockland County Legislature Chairman Alden H. Wolfe welcomed the parole board's decision.

“While this crime was committed nearly 35 years ago, for many in Rockland, it remains as fresh and as painful as the day it happened,” Wolfe said in a prepared statement. “This attack – an attack on our entire society – left three families without their fathers, sons and husbands. The convicted killer can never be allowed to serve less than the full federal sentence for planning and carrying out this violent crime. I am satisfied that the Parole Board took a hard look and came to the rightful decision to deny the release.”

Shakur was convicted in 1988 of leading the domestic terrorist group that committed the Brinks robbery and other crimes. At his trial, his attorney argued there was no proof that his client participated in the robberies, the Daily Mail reported.

According to the Daily Mail, Shakur was eligible for mandatory parole after serving half his 60-year sentence and could only be denied it if the commission found likely to reoffend or had frequently violated prison rules. Federal officials would not say why parole was denied, the paper reported.

Although the Nyack Police Department no longer exists, every year a memorial service at 4 p.m. on Oct. 20 at the site of the slayings brings together survivors of that day along with family members of the victims and hundreds of local, state, regional and national law enforcement officials. A scholarship named in honor of O'Grady and Brown is awarded annually to support Rockland County students seeking a career in law enforcement.