“What happened to the musician who robbed the bank?”/“He made off with the lute.”
“Lute” (a musical instrument) shouldn’t be confused with “loot” (contraband, plunder), but there are jokes. This joke was printed in the Detroit (MI) Free Press on May 25, 1977:
“TODAY’S WORST JOKE: There was the guy who robbed a music store, made off with the lute.”
A different version (a musician robbing a bank) is this riddle, posted on the newsgroup alt.uk.penpals on January 4, 2000:
Q: What happened to the musician that robbed the bank?
A: He made off with the lute.
25 May 1977, Detroit (MI) Free Press, “The Town Crier” by Mark Beltaire, pg. 3A, col. 1:
TODAY’S WORST JOKE: There was the guy who robbed a music store, made off with the lute.
3 June 1994, Pittsburgh (PA) Post-Gazette, “Puzzle Solutions,” pg. B-11, col. 2:
Solution for previous Cryptoquip:
Very clever thief robbed music store downtown and made off with the lute.
Google Groups: alt.uk.penpals
Just for a laugh
Alan
1/4/00
(...)
What happened to the musician that robbed the bank?
He made off with the lute
Google Groups: alt.humor.puns
LSD GOES NUTZ was re: Why is ‘widdle’dougie ellis, so St00pid
Stan Kegel
3/10/01
(...)
44 What happened to the musician that robbed the bank?
He made off with the lute (By Scott Ryan) •
Google Groups: alt.humor.puns
Puns of the Weak 01/04/02
Stan Kegel
1/5/02
(...)
What happened to the musician that robbed the bank?
He made off with the lute (Cynthia MacGregor)
Google Groups: alt.humor.puns
Puns of the Weak 08-22-03
Stan Kegel
8/22/03
(...)
Heard about the musician who robbed the bank… He made off with the lute!
(Nick Grivas)
Twitter
Gadget Meistress
@joyctilton
RT @BlindFunk Heard about the musician that robbed the bank…. He made off with the lute!
11:38 PM - 19 Nov 2009
Twitter
PUNS
@omgthatspunny
Heard about the musician that robbed the bank…he made off with the lute! #punny
10:38 PM - 31 Aug 2011
Twitter
Martin Lewis
@MartinLewis96
A music store was robbed in town today. The theif made off with the lute.
11:39 AM - 4 Nov 2012
23 June 2013, Asheville (NC) Citizen-Times, “Doodle Zoo,” comics sec., pg. 2, col. 4:
A MUSICIAN ROBBED THE BANK. HE MADE OFF WITH THE LUTE!
Google Books
The Everything Big Book of Jokes:
Hundreds of the Shortest, Longest, Silliest, Smartest, Most Hilarious Jokes You’ve Ever Heard!
By Evan C Thomas
Avon, MA: Adams Media
2014
Pg. 121:
A MUSIC STORE WAS ROBBED last week. The robbers made off with the lute.
Google Books
The Best Joke Book (Period):
Hundreds of the Funniest, Silliest, Most Ridiculous Jokes Ever
By William Donohue
Avon, MA: Adams Media
2014
Pg. 81:
A music store was robbed last week. The robbers made off with the lute.
Reddit—Dadjokes
Posted by u/Ew0k5AN0nomi5 June 21, 2019
Did you hear about the robbery at the music store?!
The thief made off with the lute.