Eugene Thomas King Jr., the convicted bank robber who once pressed a gun to Paula Deen’s head during a 1987 holdup, has died.
He was found dead inside his Brooklyn apartment on Thursday, family members told TMZ. The cause of death has not yet been determined.
At the time of the holdup, Deen was working as a bank teller, and the frightening encounter would only gain widespread attention decades later as her celebrity grew.
The incident resurfaced in 2013 during a lawsuit brought by a former restaurant employee, when Deen referenced the robbery in a deposition and admitted to using a racial slur while recounting the trauma.
During an interview with Inside Edition at the time, King said, ‘I really feel for her. She’s being persecuted because of that one little mistake in her judgment.
‘She was acting out of anger.’
Eugene Thomas King Jr., the convicted bank robber who once pressed a gun to Paula Deen’s head during a 1987 holdup, has died; (Deen in 2014)
King made headlines decades ago for the armed robbery that forever linked his name to Deen, who was working as a bank teller at the time
King added, ‘I regret that I pointed a gun at her.I wish there was a way to take it back.’
He had previously expressed remorse in a 1987 statement to police, writing, ‘Please tell her I’m sorry, but I never intended to hurt anyone.’
