Dillinger's Cache

Greetings all,
Its great for bringing in the tourist meaning its great for business. If you want to visit Little Bohemia to see where Dillinger and his gang shot it out with D.O.I. agents on April 22, 1934 then this is the place you want to visit. But if you're planning a trip to Little Bohemia to search for Dillinger's buried suitcase containing $200,000 in currency my advise is to save your money... Dillinger never buried a suitcase here. I am a retired police chief who has spent years investigating legends of lost treasure. Dillinger was a personal project of mine that I delved into because of his icon status as an American gangster and that period in our history has always fascinated me. Using D.O.I. agent's reports I re-created in chronological order the events of April 22, 1934 on my computer. My published conclusion is that the D.O.I. agents and local law enforcement at Little Bohemia that evening executed one of the most appalling raids in US law enforcement history. The reason for this was glaring as I read the reports 73 years after the fact. In 1934 the D.O.I. (forerunner of the FBI) was an investigative branch of the federal gov't. that was still in its infancy and not yet permanently funded. Agents often held degrees in accounting and most had no real law enforcement training or experience. In its infancy agents were not armed and not permitted to carry firearms, but that all changed during the prohibition / gangster era. In 1934 agents were armed but poorly trained. Dillinger and his associates escaped the lodge by using a pre-determined escape plan that Dillinger drilled his gang on April 20th, two days before the botched raid. By following this plan the gang would exit the lodge from the rear and flee into the woods directly behind the parking lot. Once in the woods, as was often his M.O. Dillinger had previously hidden a cache of ammunition on the 20th. This is the only thing Dillinger hid in the woods by the way.

The myth is that one of the "molls" who was arrested the next morning at LB told officers that Dillinger grabbed a suitcase containing $200,000 from his room and fled 500 yards into the woods from behind the lodge. Here, she claims he buried the suitcase near two pine trees and an oak. First problem is that none of the molls fled with the gang that night. All 3 remained in the lodge with the Wanatka's from the time the first shot was fired until the next morning when they were arrested. None of them had a clue what Dillinger did after the shooting started. Second , I found no statement in the DOI files that remotely sounded close.

Then there was Agent Deveruex's supplemental report which he filed from the South Bend, Indiana DOI office 10 days following the LB battle. Deveruex documented a report from an informant who proved himself with having info
about LB that only the gang and officers would know. The informant feared his own arrest for harboring a fugitive
should officers discover this fact, so he went to the DOI first. In addition the informant had attended school with Homer Van Meter, who with Dillinger and an unknown 3rd male arrived at the informant's residence on May 2, 1934.
They remained less than 24 hours and departed. During this time the informant stated that they carried a suitcase
full of money. The money was dumped out of the suitcase and stuffed into a gunny sack, which they took with them on the afternoon of May 3rd. He also stated he heard Dillinger mention the amount of $210,000. We know the suitcase was said to carry $200,000. Incidentally Dillinger's cut from their last bank job was between $10 - $11,000.
From Deveruex's supplemental we now know Dillinger was still in possession of the suitcase and money 10 days after the LB gunfight. My article on the LB - Dillinger cache appeared in - Treasure Cache, 2007 Annual Edition, page
20. Happy Hunting!

Hangman