Paddy Mitchell

Patrick Michael Mitchell (also known as Paddy; June 26, 1942 – January 14, 2007) of Ottawa, Ontario, was leader of the notorious "Stopwatch Gang" of bank robbers. Mitchell was on the Federal Bureau of Investigation's most wanted list for the Stopwatch Gang's bank robberies across the United States.

Background Mitchell, working with fellow Canadians Stephen Reid, and Lionel Wright stole approximately $15 million—mainly in the 1970s and 1980s—from more than 140 banks and other sites across Canada and the U.S. They successfully completed a $750,000 gold heist in 1974 from the Ottawa airport. They were arrested after that robbery and all escaped from prison by 1979. They were known for non-violent methods and politeness to victims. The gang's story is recorded in several television documentaries and books, including Mitchell's autobiography, This Bank Robber's Life, which he wrote from prison. The gang's biggest heist took place at a Bank of America branch in San Diego on September 23, 1980, when the US$283,000 they stole set a San Diego record. Wright and Mitchell had a hideout in Forest Houses in Oak Creek Canyon and Mitchell rented a house about three miles north.

Mitchell later moved to the Philippines for 15 years, where he remarried and had a son.