Retired Intelligence Detective Gary Jenkins brings you the best in mob history with his unique perception of the mafia. In this episode, I recount the thrilling tale of the Battle of Little Bohemia, a showdown involving infamous gangsters like John Dillinger and Babyface Nelson in the 1930s. The narrative vividly describes the chaotic raid on the Little Bohemia lodge by law enforcement under Melvin Purvis, showcasing a tense and dangerous confrontation filled with gunfights and dramatic escapes. The story delves into the planning challenges, unexpected twists, and tragic consequences, including casualties like Special Agent Carter Baum. The aftermath explores the criticism and emotional impact of the failed raid, offering a compelling insight into the relentless pursuit of justice and sacrifices made by law enforcement agents during that turbulent period.

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Transcript

Transcript

[0:00]

Introduction

[0:00]Well, hey, all you wiretappers. Glad to be back here in studio Gangland Wire.

I’m glad to have you here with me. You know, this is Gary Jenkins,

retired Kansas City Police Intelligence Unit detective, now turned podcaster.

[0:15]

Inquiry from Greg Scavuzzo

[0:11]And I have a show for you today that I’m kind of excited about.

I did this a long time ago. I had a inquiry from Greg Scavuzzo on my YouTube channel.

And Greg’s longtime listener, Kansas City guy, he said, hey,

why don’t you ever do anything about those 30s bank robbers?

We had a lot of those here around Kansas City.

[0:39]

Kansas City Massacre at Union Station

[0:33]We had the, as you know now, by now, we have the Kansas City massacre down at the Union Station.

So this month, I’m doing nothing but those 30s gangsters. And so I’ve got the

Kansas City massacre at Union Station with Terrence O’Malley,

[0:49]

John Dillinger’s Escape from Little Bohemia

[0:48]who’s a real expert on that.

And I am doing the John Dillinger story, but not the John Dillinger escape from jail story.

I am doing the John Dillinger escape from the Battle of Little Bohemia story,

which is maybe not as well known.

John Dillinger and his crew, after he escaped from jail at Crown Point,

Indiana, he was on the lam. He got back in with some of his old buddies,

Babyface Nelson and Homer Van Meter and two or three others.

[1:17]And they were going around robbing banks and doing things and they needed to lay low.

And the police, after that Crown Point jail thing, and they took that lady sheriff’s

car and it was it was it hit the headlines.

It was so flew in the face of law enforcement that people were starting to like back off from this.

Hey, John Dillinger’s like Robin Hood thing. And law enforcement was after him.

They were raiding pads in Chicago. They were raiding apartments.

They were raiding places all over the Midwest.

There were reports coming in from all kinds of, you know, he wouldn’t,

if John Dillinger was in Northern Minnesota and a bank was robbed in Southern

Missouri, John Dillinger got the credit and Clyde Barrow, Bonnie and Clyde,

they got some of the same kind of a thing.

People are always, you know, trying to say that was Bonnie and Clyde or that

was John John Dillinger, because they were so well-known.

Well, John Dillinger really was up in northern Wisconsin.