James Verone Commits $1 Bank Robbery to Obtain Health Care

A 59-year-old unemployed North Carolina man claims he attempted to rob a RBC bank with the purpose of obtaining access to medical care, ABC News reported.

According to witnesses, James Verone, who admitted to reporters that he suffers from a growth on his chest and ruptured discs but has no money, walked into the bank, handed the teller a note claiming he was armed, and then proceeded to sit down on a couch to wait for the police.

“I started to walk away from the teller, then I went back and said, I’ll be sitting right over there in the chair waiting for the police,” he said, according to local television station 9News. “I wanted to make it known that this wasn’t for monetary reasons, but for medical reasons.”

The “logical” Verone calculated that a non-violent crime like the bank hold-up would land him at least a three year jail sentence, giving him access to medical treatment and making him eligible for Social Security upon his release.

Unfortunately for Him, his plan may not pan out exactly the way he had hoped. Due to the fact that he only demanded $1 and was unarmed, Mr. Verone was only charged with larceny, which carries a substantially shorter sentence.

One thing that is certain is that this James Verone incident will definitely add some fuel to the constantly ongoing health care debate fire.

Here is a clip detailing the bizarre $1 bank robbery incident:

via NYDaily