Director Rosell Tursi retells the story of her 72-year-old Italian grandmother, Rosa Tursi, who was taken hostage by bank robbers Bernard Belisle and Pierre Racicot in Montreal, Canada on September 1, 1983 in the 25-minute mini-doc “The Time My Grandmother Was Held Hostage by Bank Robbers.”
THE STORY
Convict Bernard Belisle had escaped from Parthenais Prison, where he was doing seven years of time. Bernard and an accomplice, Pierre Racicot, chose to rob a Royal Bank at Bernar and Park Avenue in Montreal. When things did not go smoothly and they were on the run, they saw the open door of Rosa Tursi’s nearby first floor flat and entered.
Armed with guns and a grenade, the duo took Rosa hostage. Bernard recalled that Rosa resisted being handcuffed saying, “She was a tough lady.” The stand-off lasted for 24 hours, during which time Bernard drank a Mountain Dew from Rosa’s refrigerator, offering to pay her for the beverage. Bernard remembered vividly the smell of Italian tomato sauce in the kitchen. He vowed that he would rather die than go back to prison.
THE DIRECTOR
Pierre Raicot in 1983 at the crime scene.
Rosa’s granddaughter, Rosella, who has been editing movies (14) and television shows (28) since at least 2018 decided to track down the truth behind the oft-repeated family story. Rosa, herself, died in January of 2006 at age 94, so it is relatives like Anna Tursi Cirino (daughter) and Morena Taylor and one of the bank robbers, himself (Bernard) who tell the story behind the story. As daughter Anna Tursi Cirino put it, “She was sitting there watching her soap operas and then her life became a soap opera.”
THE ROBBER
One of the robbers, Bernard Belisle, appears and is interviewed. His vow regarding death over imprisonment caused him to inject himself with ethanol, used in veterinarians’ offices, before being taken prisoner and carried from the house on a stretcher. Bernard was taken to the hospital where he remained in a coma for 3 days.
Bernard Belisle in 1983 at the scene of the crime,
Bank robber Bernard Belisle today.
Officials tacked on another 10 years in prison for Bernard as punishment for the escape and the bank robbery. Now reformed, he works at St. Thomas of Assissi Church in Montreal. Bernard knew nothing about his former partner in crime.
ROSA TURSI
Grandma Rosa Tursi on the left, as seen in photographs from “The Time My Grandmother Was Taken Hostage by Bank Robbers” at the HollyShorts 2026 Film Festival.
Rosella’s grandmother refused to move from her first floor home, despite expressing concern that all in the family keep their doors and windows locked from then on and the Tursi family’s concerns for her safety. She lived there, alone, until her death in January of this year.
The story, written by Christine Champagne in collaboration with Rosella, was interesting, and original music was provided by Mandy Hoffman. Newspaper photos and actual testimony from the reformed criminal himself (after 40-some years) made this 25-minute short about a feisty grandmother from Italy, who emigrated from Italy to Canada in 1952 into an interesting and entertaining mini documentary.
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