Sándor Rózsa

Sandor Rozsa (July 10, 1813 – November 22, 1878) was a Hungarian serial killer, robber, and outlaw (in Hungarian: betyár). He is the best-known Hungarian highwayman; his life inspired numerous writers, notably Zsigmond Móricz and Gyula Krúdy. After his death, his life was romanticized in fiction due to his role in the Hungarian Revolution of 1848. Rózsa, like Jóska Sobri, is one of the most famous Hungarian betyárs (bandits).

Biography Rózsa was born on July 10, 1813 to his mother Erzsébet (Elisabeth) Kántor and father András (Andrew) Rózsa. He lost his father at an early age, as he was hanged for rustling cattle, This had a major impact on the rest of his life. He was illiterate.

Rózsa committed his first crime on the outskirts of Kiskunhalas. In 1836, at the age of 23, he was prosecuted for stealing two cows from farmer István Darabos, for which he was sent to Szeged prison. After his escape from Szeged Prison, he became a runaway, and many illegal activities were attributed his name.

He killed 30 people, including gendarmes.

After the restoration of Habsburg power

After the fall of the revolution he was forced to flee and returned to his earlier life as a highwayman. Sándor Rózsa became a colt rider near Szeged and got married. There was a false rumour that he was the leader of a revolutionary conspiracy, so an unusually high bounty of 10,000 silver forints was put on his head to ensure his capture. Despite this, he was not caught for many years, until in 1857, his comrade-in-law, a farmer named Pál Katona from Szeged, handed him over to the gendarmes. The trial was held in February 1859. Because of his status as a popular outlaw in the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence, he was sentenced to death by hanging; however, Emperor Franz Joseph commuted his sentence to life imprisonment to avoid making him a martyr. He spent 9 years in prisons at Kufstein, Szabadka and Pétervárad until he was released in a general amnesty in 1868. Sándor Rózsa was such a notorious personality that during his imprisonment in Kufstein, he could be seen for money in the marketplace on Sundays.

In the same year he resumed his old pursuits and robbed post coaches and railway trains.

Train robbery and arrest Rózsa was over 55 years old when he attempted to rob a mail train between Szeged and Budapest. He received news that a large shipment of money was arriving by train containing the salaries of every Csongrád county state employee. Rózsa and his gang expected the money to be poorly guarded, making plans one week before the robbery.