Robbery, Inc. - Rumor Has It

Credit: Marietta Daily Journal

In this episode of Robbery, Inc., host Madison Elizabeth Hogan traces the origins of the most persistent local rumor surrounding the 1974 tunnel burglary of Cobb Exchange Bank in Marietta, Georgia. Though the official record shows the burglars stole just $9,000 in cash, whispers across town suggested they had targeted specific safe deposit boxes, including one rumored to belong to a prominent local attorney. Madison explores how a joke at the crime scene, fueled by old friendships and small-town politics, helped shape a story that endured for decades.

Through interviews with eyewitnesses, relatives, and longtime residents, the episode unpacks the humor and speculation that took hold in Marietta after the break-in. From satirical letters to the editor to columns filled with one-liners about engineering students and MARTA workers, the community processed the crime with irony and laughter. But behind the jokes, questions lingered about what was really taken, and whether official statements told the full story. Even former District Attorney Buddy Darden, who lived through the event, reveals how little was formally investigated at the state level.

As the story unfolds, Madison examines how misinformation spreads and how newspapers preserve both fact and fiction. She reminds listeners that when rumors move faster than the truth, it becomes difficult to separate memory from myth. In the end, the facts point to a calculated robbery, but with Morris Lynn Johnson still on the run in the narrative timeline, the episode leaves one lingering question: What is it about stories like this that continues to grip our collective imagination?