Heist crew

Norm Richards

Voiced by Evan Neumann

Determinant4 missions

Norm Richards turns up in 4 of the 77 story missions, first in The Jewel Store Job and last in The Big Score.

Hired for a heist. Who you take changes the cut and how cleanly the job goes.

Role: Heist crew
Voice actor: Evan Neumann
Status: Determinant
Occupation: Freelance gunman
Affiliations: Lester Crest, Michael De Santa, Franklin Clinton, Trevor Philips

Player notes

Norm Richards is a freelance gunman voiced by Evan Neumann. Once a husband and father of three, he changes after learning that Michael Townley has died. He robs a warehouse for $10,000, spends the money on drugs and prostitutes, then abandons his wife and children without paying child support. After Casing the Jewel Store, Lester Crest can bring Norm into Michael De Santa, Franklin Clinton and Trevor Philips's heist crews. Norm is intensely devoted to Michael and repeatedly praises him when they work together.

If hired for The Jewel Store Job, Norm mishandles his role. On the loud approach, a hostage breaks free while he fails to control the crowd, leaving Michael to intervene. On the smart approach, he loses some of the jewelry he has collected. In either version, his motorcycle breaks down before the crew reaches the sewer tunnels. Norm crashes, dies and drops his bag of jewelry. During The Paleto Score, a police car pins him against a wall. As he dies, he asks Michael whether he made him proud, and his share of the take is left beside his body.

Norm can also join The Bureau Raid. He dies in the explosion during the escape from the FIB building on the covert approach, unless Daryl Johns or Hugh Welsh is the other gunman, in which case that man is killed instead. Norm survives the roof approach. At The Big Score, he struggles to load a Gauntlet on the subtle approach when assigned as the first gunman, losing part of the gold. He performs adequately on the obvious approach, though an inexperienced Norm may die in the escape shootout if he is the second gunman. His survival and final fate depend on these selections.

Trivia

◆Norm knows about Michael changing his name from Townley to De Santa, as he mentions it if chosen for The Jewel Store Job. Michael will then tell him to be quiet to which Norm nervously replies "Uhhh...be cool man. Your secret's safe with me...us."
◆If the player destroys the car Norm got stuck behind during The Paleto Score, the explosion will throw the car away and Norm will walk away alive and start acting like a usual pedestrian. He does not shoot the police and isn't shot by them either. Also, he cannot be shot by the player with gunfire.
◆When Norm dies in The Paleto Score, Trevor asks Michael why he hired "someone with his head up [Michael's] colon". Michael will respond that he didn't know that Norm had a "hard-on" for him when he hired him.
◆During the roof entry approach of The Bureau Raid, Norm will bring a rainbow parachute. Michael will comment on it, asking him if he was aware that he was buying a parachute for a stealth op. Norm promises that next time, he will bring a parachute just like Michael's. Franklin will defend Norm, saying that due to his low cut, the rainbow parachute is probably all he can afford.
◆Norm will use the Assault Rifle in the roof entry approach of The Bureau Raid. Franklin comments on it, asking him why he brought a weak weapon. Norm will refuse to take such criticism from Franklin, stating he will only hear it from Michael.
◆If Norm dies during the covert approach of The Bureau Raid, Franklin asks if he really will miss Norm, Michael will respond by saying that he doesn't like losing crew members, which will make Franklin say that Norm admired Michael and was doing his best to impress him. Michael will admit his awareness of Norm's fondness for him. Franklin will state that idolizing Michael probably led to Norm's demise.
◆In the subtle approach of The Big Score, there is a glitch where even if Norm is not chosen as the first gunman, the other gunmen will always look like him. This was fixed in the enhanced version (PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC).
◆If Norm loses his weapon, he will pull out an AP Pistol. Should he die with it, the weapon cannot be retrieved by the player.