Bond denied for defendant in 1983 Conn. robbery

HARTFORD, Conn. – A federal judge has denied a request by a Puerto Rican nationalist charged in a $7 million 1983 robbery in Connecticut to be released while he awaits trial.

Magistrate Judge Thomas P. Smith said Thursday that Norberto Gonzalez Claudio poses a flight risk because he lived as a fugitive for 25 years.

Gonzalez was one of the last two remaining fugitives in the robbery from a Wells Fargo armored car depot in West Hartford. It was the largest cash robbery in U.S. history to that point.

The crime was orchestrated by a group that claimed responsibility for violence in the name of Puerto Rican independence.

Gonzalez is not accused of participating directly in the heist. He has pleaded not guilty to charges including bank robbery and conspiracy.