Italy's ``gentleman bandit,'' an affable anarchist who courteously robbed banks in the 1960s and 1970s, has died in prison of a heart attack on December 25 at the age of 62.

Horst Fantazzini conducted nonviolent stickups across northern Italy, often using a toy gun according to some stories, and won his nickname after sending roses to a bank teller who had fainted during a robbery.

His not-so-gentlemanly 1973 jailbreak attempt was depicted in a 1999 Italian movie called ``Outlaw'' by Enzo Monteleone. Fantazzini wounded three guards and took two more hostages during the standoff.

He died Tuesday in prison in Dozza, a suburb outside of the northern city of Bologna, after more than three decades in and out of jail and various escape attempts, a prison official said.

He was enjoying ``semi-liberty,'' an alternative sentence which allows model prisoners to spend part of their time outside of jail, until last week when he was re-arrested while trying to rob a Bologna bank and put back in prison full-time.

The ``gentleman bandit'' was born in Germany to an anarchist father and became a prominent figure in the Italian anarchist movement himself as well as a supporter of the ``Red Brigade'' extremist group that murdered former Prime Minister Aldo Moro.

(Agencies)