Cretzer-Kyle Gang
Encyclopedia
The Cretzer-Kyle Gang was a Depression-era
criminal group led by Joseph "Dutch" Cretzer
and Arnold Thomas Kyle during the mid-to late 1930s. Largely active in the West Coast
, they were one of the few groups to gain national attention outside the Midwest and also one of the last groups to be captured by the FBI at the end of the decade. Cretzer was killed in a failed attempt to escape Alcatraz resulting in the 1946 prison riot
.
. At the end of the year, the three men struck again at a branch bank inside the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles
, California
on November 29 escaping with $2,765. On January 23, 1936, they stole $6,000 from a bank in Oakland
and then returned to Los Angeles the next day to steal another $1,475. The gang remained in Los Angeles County for another six months robbing a number of banks, their biggest jobs netting them $6,100 on March 3 and $1,996 on July 1. However, one of their most successful robberies took them outside the Los Angeles-area when they stole $14,581 from a local bank in Seattle, Washington
on July 27.
Soon after this robbery, the modus operandum of the gang changed as Cretzer, Kyle and Hartmann had all been identified by witnesses by this time as having participated in all the gang's robberies. Cretzer was reportedly absent when Kyle and Hartmann robbed $8,000 from another Seattle bank. Similarly, Cretzer was on his own when he walked out of a Los Angeles bank with $2,870 on January 28, 1937. John Hetzer made his first appearance with the gang during this time taking part in the robbery of a Portland
bank with Kyle and Hartmann on March 29 which netted $18,195. This would be the gang's most successful bank job to date.
in Pittsburgh, California
, however she quickly posted bail whilst her husband Joseph remained a fugitive.
Cretzner and Kyle made one last attempt by fleeing to the Midwest where, only a few years before, so many outlaws such as John Dillinger
and the Karpis
-Barker Gang had success. The law finally caught up to Arnold Kyle when, on May 18, 1939, he was arrested in Minneapolis
, Minnesota
for drunk driving. He claimed his name was Raymond Palmer, but fingerprints confirmed his identity and he was turned over to the FBI. He pleaded guilty to federal bank robbery charges and was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment at McNeil Island
, ironically near the area where he robbed his first banks.
Cretzer was apprehended two months later when the FBI caught up to him in Chicago, Illinois on August 27. On November 7, his wife Edna, sister of Arnold Kyle, pleaded guilty to harboring her husband and Cretzer himself confessed to one of the robberies in Los Angeles on January 24, 1940, and was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment. Cretzer was also incarcerated at McNeil's Island and reunited with his old partner and brother-in-law. Together they hijacked a prison lorry in an attempt to escape but were both recaptured after three days hiding in the woodshttp://www.notfrisco2.com/alcatraz/bios/cretzer/548McN.html. During their trial for attempted escape, Cretzer with Kyle, made another escape attempt by assaulting U.S. Marshal A.J. Chitty but both were caught before they could flee the courthouse. Chitty died from heart attack as a result of his injuries, and both were sentenced to life imprisonmenthttp://vlex.com/vid/arnold-thomas-kyle-united-states-america-36672089. Cretzer and Kyle were transferred to Alcatraz after this incident. Cretzer and Kyle made another failed attempt to escape from Alcatraz in 1941 and in 1946 Cretzer died during yet another escape attempt, the so-called Battle of Alcatraz
.
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
criminal group led by Joseph "Dutch" Cretzer
Joseph Paul Cretzer
Joseph Paul Cretzer was an American bank robber and prisoner at Alcatraz who participated in and was slain in the bloody "Battle of Alcatraz" which took place following a failed escape attempt between May 2 and May 4, 1946.-Criminal career:Cretzer started his criminal...
and Arnold Thomas Kyle during the mid-to late 1930s. Largely active in the West Coast
Western United States
.The Western United States, commonly referred to as the American West or simply "the West," traditionally refers to the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. Because the U.S. expanded westward after its founding, the meaning of the West has evolved over time...
, they were one of the few groups to gain national attention outside the Midwest and also one of the last groups to be captured by the FBI at the end of the decade. Cretzer was killed in a failed attempt to escape Alcatraz resulting in the 1946 prison riot
Battle of Alcatraz
The Battle of Alcatraz, which lasted from May 2–4, 1946, was the result of an unsuccessful escape attempt at Alcatraz Island Federal Penitentiary. Two guards—William A. Miller and Harold Stites—were killed along with three of the inmates. Eleven guards and one convict were also injured...
.
History
Originally formed by bank robbers Joseph "Dutch" Cretzer and Arnold Kyle, and later joined by regular members Milton Hartmann and John Oscar Hetzer, the gang's first recorded robbery was on January 31, 1935, when Cretzer, Kyle and Hartmann stole $3,396 from a bank in Portland, OregonPortland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. At the end of the year, the three men struck again at a branch bank inside the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
on November 29 escaping with $2,765. On January 23, 1936, they stole $6,000 from a bank in Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
and then returned to Los Angeles the next day to steal another $1,475. The gang remained in Los Angeles County for another six months robbing a number of banks, their biggest jobs netting them $6,100 on March 3 and $1,996 on July 1. However, one of their most successful robberies took them outside the Los Angeles-area when they stole $14,581 from a local bank in Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
on July 27.
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
bank with Kyle and Hartmann on March 29 which netted $18,195. This would be the gang's most successful bank job to date.
Break-up of the Gang
The authorities had begun to actively pursue the gang, the FBI by now focusing on criminal gangs outside the Midwest, and Hertzer was arrested by federal agents in a Los Angeles garage eight days after the robbery in Portland. The following day, the FBI raided the Stuart Hotel in Los Angeles but Hartmann committed suicide by shooting himself before agents entered his room. On January 25, 1936, Edna Cretzer was taken into custody and charged with running a brothelBrothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
in Pittsburgh, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, however she quickly posted bail whilst her husband Joseph remained a fugitive.
Cretzner and Kyle made one last attempt by fleeing to the Midwest where, only a few years before, so many outlaws such as John Dillinger
John Dillinger
John Herbert Dillinger, Jr. was an American bank robber in Depression-era United States. He was charged with, but never convicted of, the murder of an East Chicago, Indiana police officer during a shoot-out. This was his only alleged homicide. His gang robbed two dozen banks and four police stations...
and the Karpis
Alvin Karpis
Alvin Francis Karpis , nicknamed "Creepy" for his sinister smile, was an American criminal known for his alliance with the Barker gang in the 1930s. He was the last "public enemy" to be taken.-Early life:Karpis was born to Lithuanian immigrants in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and was raised in Topeka,...
-Barker Gang had success. The law finally caught up to Arnold Kyle when, on May 18, 1939, he was arrested in Minneapolis
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
for drunk driving. He claimed his name was Raymond Palmer, but fingerprints confirmed his identity and he was turned over to the FBI. He pleaded guilty to federal bank robbery charges and was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment at McNeil Island
McNeil Island
McNeil Island is an island in western Puget Sound, located just west of Steilacoom, Washington, with a land area of 17.177 km² . It lies just north of Anderson Island. Fox Island is to the north, across Carr Inlet. To the west McNeil Island is separated from Key Peninsula by Pitt Passage. The...
, ironically near the area where he robbed his first banks.
Cretzer was apprehended two months later when the FBI caught up to him in Chicago, Illinois on August 27. On November 7, his wife Edna, sister of Arnold Kyle, pleaded guilty to harboring her husband and Cretzer himself confessed to one of the robberies in Los Angeles on January 24, 1940, and was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment. Cretzer was also incarcerated at McNeil's Island and reunited with his old partner and brother-in-law. Together they hijacked a prison lorry in an attempt to escape but were both recaptured after three days hiding in the woodshttp://www.notfrisco2.com/alcatraz/bios/cretzer/548McN.html. During their trial for attempted escape, Cretzer with Kyle, made another escape attempt by assaulting U.S. Marshal A.J. Chitty but both were caught before they could flee the courthouse. Chitty died from heart attack as a result of his injuries, and both were sentenced to life imprisonmenthttp://vlex.com/vid/arnold-thomas-kyle-united-states-america-36672089. Cretzer and Kyle were transferred to Alcatraz after this incident. Cretzer and Kyle made another failed attempt to escape from Alcatraz in 1941 and in 1946 Cretzer died during yet another escape attempt, the so-called Battle of Alcatraz
Battle of Alcatraz
The Battle of Alcatraz, which lasted from May 2–4, 1946, was the result of an unsuccessful escape attempt at Alcatraz Island Federal Penitentiary. Two guards—William A. Miller and Harold Stites—were killed along with three of the inmates. Eleven guards and one convict were also injured...
.