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Ma Barker: America’s Most Wanted Mother.
In a time when notorious Depression-era criminals were terrorizing the country, the Barker-Karpis Gang stole more money than mobsters John Dillinger, Vern Miller, and Bonnie and Clyde combined. Five of the most wanted thieves, murderers, and kidnappers by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the 1930s were from the same family. Authorities believed the woman behind the band of violent hoodlums that ravaged the Midwest was their mother, Kate “Ma” Barker.
Alvin Karpis, Harvey Bailey, and Bernard “Big Phil” Courtney walked quickly out of the Citizens National Bank in Wahpeton, North Dakota, on September 30, 1932. Each was wearing long over coats, and if not for the Thompson machine guns or .45 caliber revolvers they carried in their hands, they could have passed as bank examiners to the casual observer. An alarm screamed behind them, and Fred Barker and Lawrence Devol charged out the double doors of the bank, each having a female hostage in front of him. Fred pulled a Tommy gun from under his coat and opened fire on law enforcement agents collecting on the sidewalk across the street from the bank. The police didn’t dare exchange bullets with the bank robbers for fear of hitting one of the captives.
The bandits kept careful eyes on the reinforcement of officers that quickly arrived. Alvin shot at the incoming officers, forcing them to take cover behind parked cars and street lights. The hostages screamed and tried unsuccessfully to break free. Thomas Holden, driver for the Barker-Karpis Gang, revved the engine on the 1932 Hudson, passenger sedan and drove it evenly and quickly out of the nearby alley.
The gangsters loaded into the vehicle as it paused momentarily. They shot more rounds at the officers to keep them pinned to the ground. The police cowered under the gang’s gunfire. Both Fred and Lawrence pulled the hostages onto the running boards of the car. The women were panicked but complied. The vehicle roared away from the bank as the women cried out for help.
In a few short moments, law enforcement was chasing after the gangsters in their police vehicles. The police were careful when they returned fire because the women were still being used as human shields. The pursuit was slowed when one of the bank robbers broke open the rear window and threw two five– gallon milk jars full of roofing nails onto the road. The police swerved their vehicles to miss the objects. Some didn’t make it. They hit the nails, and their tires blew. A flurry of fast gunfire from the fugitives dissuaded the officials from traveling too close to the getaway car.
To learn more about Ma Barker and the Barker-Karpis Gang read
Ma Barker: America’s Most Wanted Mother.
