Noteworthy: Interesting documentary coming soon about the man who robbed all those banks

By Bruce Penton on April 30, 2025.

The man who robbed two Medicine Hat banks on back-to-back days in 2017 is the subject of a Prime Video documentary that will be available on May 9.

Steve Vogelsang was no run-of-the-mill armed robber. He had been a high-profile sportscaster on CTV in Winnipeg and later served as a journalism professor at the University of Winnipeg. But tough times took over his life, and a combination of depression, a failed marriage and huge debts led to his spiralling downhill and, said his lawyer, a “lapse of judgment.”

Vogelsang, who also robbed banks in Regina and Saskatoon, was sentenced to more than six years in prison for his robbery spree.

The documentary is called The Sexiest Man in Winnipeg.

• Glen Motz being re-elected as the Member of Parliament for Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner ranks right up there in the ‘surprise’ category with the rising of the sun tomorrow morning, but the national events Monday night were somewhat more surprising.

Pollsters were telling us for the last few weeks that the Mark Carney Liberals would likely form the government – thanks in part to the anti-Trump sentiment – and that the huge lead built up in the pre-Trudeau-resignation days by Pierre Poilievre’s Conservatives had evaporated, but Monday’s results will still provide enough fodder for political scientists to study for months.

The race was tight all night and Canada’s political picture is closer to the two-party style of the U.S. than it has ever been. The Bloc Québécois and the New Democrats saw their vote totals collapse, and those votes appear to have gone in large chunks to the two main parties. Ultimately, it seems the Liberals will run Canada with a minority government, but they are only a few seats from majority and not all the counting is complete.

While two Liberals were elected in Calgary, the vast majority of seats in our province went to the Conservatives. And while there won’t be a Jan. 6-style attack on Parliament by angry Albertans, you can bet the chatter about separation from Canada will pick up steam.

Meanwhile, tariffs, annexation and 51st state talk will be top of mind for Prime Minister Carney, who will have to work with the Conservatives in a minority government situation. Minorities are always fragile governments, so we can almost expect to have another federal election within the next 18 to 24 months.

• David Hearn of Brampton, Ont., perhaps the least accomplished member of Canada’s PGA Tour group, is among 19 pro golfers who have more than $10 million in career earnings without a tournament victory. His total is $10,090,312. In an earlier, but fairly recent era, Ben Crenshaw won 19 tournaments, including two majors, and had a career total of $3 million in earnings.

Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., is also on that $10-million-no-win list with $11,265,285. Back injuries brought his career to an early end.

The leader in this ignominious category is England’s Tommy Fleetwood, with $25,829,203.

• It’s no secret that the Baby Boom generation, of which I’m a proud member, struck it rich as far as opportunities go. It has resulted in, according to a recent story in Maclean’s magazine, a trillion-dollar wealth transfer, mostly to millennials, in the coming years, as the Boomers die off. Eventually, said the article, “a person’s success in this country (will be) determined not by hard work or education, but by how rich their parents were.”

• Jim Best has exclusive rights to retrieve golf balls from various courses in the southeastern U.S. and he annually brings up around 70,000 of them from TPC Sawgrass in Jacksonville alone. But he finds more than golf balls. He’s also found cellphones, cameras, sunglasses, hats and putters. “I’ve gotten five or six Scotty Cameron putters,” he told CNN. “They’re just flung out there!”

• Short snappers: Adding a touch of garlic to your food is healthy, say dietitians, helping to lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels. … Sign of the week: “Septic tanks pumped. Swimming pools filled. Not same truck.” … It was a good week for Medicine Hat native Eric Ayomanor. First, the wide receiver who starred at Stanford was selected in the fourth round of the National Football League draft by Tennessee Titans and was then named No. 1 on the Canadian Football League’s top 20 list of prospects.

Bruce Penton is a retired News editor who may be reached at brucepenton2003@yahoo.ca

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