John Dillinger was a famous American gangster. The gang he ran was charged with involvement in several major criminal acts, including 24 bank robberies. He has established himself as one of the most notorious criminals in the United States along with other villains such as Bonnie and Clyde, Little Nelson and Pritty Boy Floyd.
Childhood and youth
John Herbert Dillinger was born June 22, 1903 in Indianapolis, Indiana, to John Wilson Dillinger and Mary Ellen Lancaster. His father was a grocer and had a reputation for being very harsh.
His mother died when John was only four years old. His older sister, who married soon after, took care of him until their father got married.
John dropped out of school as a teenager and started working on small errands. He was a wayward teenager and started breaking the law. Dillinger was later enlisted in the United States Navy, but was eventually fired due to his misconduct.
Biography of the offender
Lack of money pushed Dillinger's first serious crime. He got married, but was unable to support his family, as he could not find a decent job. To make ends meet, he and his friend plotted a robbery. They robbed a local grocery store but were arrested by the police. John was convicted on multiple charges and sentenced to 10 years in prison.
While serving his sentence, Dillinger befriended several experienced criminals. While still in prison, they began planning future robberies, which they committed shortly after their release.
The long prison sentence made Dillinger very angry. The marriage also fell apart and John became disillusioned with life. He decided to become a violent criminal after his release.
He was released in May 1933, during the peak of the Great Depression, so he never dreamed of finding a decent job. The young man returned to the criminal path and robbed his first bank in June 1933.
Shortly after his release, he helped his fellow prisoners escape from prison. This is how the first Dillinger gang was formed.
Dillinger and his gangsters robbed several banks in Indiana and Wisconsin and soon became famous throughout the country. Gang members, including Dillinger himself, were often arrested and imprisoned. However, they always found a way to escape from prison.
Dillinger's gang was very resourceful. During one crime, they pretended to be a film crew looking for a location for filming a movie about a bank robbery; another time, they appeared as alarm sales specialists to get into the bank vault and gain access to the security system.
Already in June 1934, the FBI named him "State Enemy No. 1" in America and awarded him a $ 10,000 reward for his capture. In order not to be recognized, Dillinger changed his appearance with the help of plastic surgery, and changed his name.
Together with his gang, he robbed the National Bank in South Bend, Indiana on June 30, 1934, but the police immediately arrived at the crime scene and a shootout ensued, which resulted in the death of Police Officer Howard Wagner. Dillinger managed to escape. This was the last robbery. On July 22, 1934, the gangster was wounded by FBI agents and died in hospital at the age of 31.
