But too damn cold had to get the hell out. John Anglin Reuters Frank Lee Morris Reuters [Alcatraz officials] were not willing to . "I really haven't come to a conclusion whether I believe that it's John reaching out or not," nephew David Widner said. Heavy handwriting analysis only produced inconclusive results when compared to the known handwriting samples from all three escapees. The prison had been thought to be inescapable, but former U.S. That's saying, I'm not staying here. Years Later, Mystery Of Alcatraz Escape Endures Escape from Alcatraz: Letter claims three inmates survived 1962 Yes we all made it that night but barely!. Just, yknow watch out for the ghosts. The Anglins and Morris made it as far as Seattle, he said, before the other men involved betrayed and murdered them. From there, they were able to launch their raft. I escape from Alcatraz in June 1962 with my Brother Clarence and Frank Morris. Evidence in the last few years The government agency joined the Bureau of Prisons and the Coast Guard to mount a massive investigation. I escape from Alcatraz in June 1962 with my Brother Clarence and Frank Morris. The FBI also came to their own conclusion that the letter by the supposed Anglin was a fake. Marshal Michael Dyke told the Today show: Obviously not. I escape (sic)from Alcatraz in June 1962 with my brother Clarence and Frank Morris. The term Thick as Thieves certainly applies here, as the three men all shared a passion for early exodus. John Anglin's cell, where he escaped through a vent in the wall, is one of the main attractions on the tour. John Anglin escaped from Alcatraz Prison in 1962 by making a plaster head of his likeness and putting it in his bed to fool the guards. Swimming in the Great Lakes would have been great training for the treacherous waters they found themselves in years later. ALSO READ:San Francisco Replaces Columbus Day With Indigenous Peoples Day. It was Yes we all made it that night but barely! But despite its simple beginnings, the letter is extraordinary because it might shed light on the only successful escape attempt that was ever made from the infamous Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in San Francisco Bay. The men were discovered missing on June 12, 1962, and the hunt was on. Im 83 years old and in bad shape. January 22, 2018 / 11:49 PM This is no joke. It adds "I am 83 years old and in bad shape. Who Is John Anglin? This Letter Might Reveal What Happened By 1979, the FBI had officially closed its case. Mr Widner expressed dismay that the letter was not delivered in a timely manner to the family. Frank Lee Morris was one of those prisoners with special skills. Morris entered his first prison at the age of 13, and by age 20 he was considered a career criminal. This much is known: In the early morning hours of June 12, 1962 John and Clarence Anglin, and Frank Morris escaped from Alcatraz prison. Published: 11:20 BST, 24 January 2018 | Updated: 17:34 BST, 24 January 2018. The investigation had been put to bed almost 40 years ago. It is believed the three inmates spent months digging a tunnel out of their cells using sharpened spoons. Guards were posted outside and making the rounds as the men hit the ground. The Anglins were caught and arrested just five days later in Ohio, and all three went to prison. Im 83 years old and in bad shape. The men made an inflatable raft out of raincoats, set off into the water sometime at night, and were never seen again. Between the four of them, they managed to acquire over 50 raincoats that had an unlikely purpose: They were going to build a raft. Yes we all made it that night but That statement contradicts what maybe a long-standing myth; that no one has ever successfully escaped The Rock.. Though no one could prove it, a San Francisco police officer claimed he saw a boat in the water that night; its lights were off but a small flashlight was scanning the water. Marshal for northern California,falls far short of putting the matter to rest. Once there, the easy part was over. After local law enforcement received the letter, they placed a call to the FBI. It wasnt the most sanitary of methods, but it got the job done. It reopened as a maximum-security facility on July 1, 1934. The writer of thelettersays he spent many years after his escape fromAlcatrazliving in Seattle. Then they went to work clawing away at the seals of their air ventilation screens, little-by-little, bit-by-bit. Originally a Civil War fort because of the islands strategic position in San Francisco Bay, it was converted into a military prison during and after the war. Fourteen attempted escapes occurred during Alcatrazs history operating as a maximum-security prison or at least, 14 that we know of but only one was successful, according to the FBI. Afterall, they needed to be in the ducts and vents for extended periods of time. 2018 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Donning their makeshift life preservers and fashioned wood paddles, the three men hopped into their 6 x 14 rubber raft, and braved the frigid waters of the San Francisco Bay. Coupled with the fact that the prison was said to be surrounded by shark-infested, 50-degree water and was located 1.25 miles away from the mainland, it was easy to see why Alcatraz had a reputation for being inescapable. Braving the waters was a bad idea, as temperatures in San Francisco Bay can dip into the 40s. The FBI dedicates a page to the escape on its website. One thing investigators and armchair detectives often point to is their travels north to Lake Michigan in the summertime. Perhaps the world will never know for certain. The fate of the three men has remained unknown for over half a century, so this letter could be big news, indeed. They used a concertina to inflate the raft. Veteran Aviator and Student Pilot He Helped Land After She Lost Her Nose Gear Take to the Skies Together, Oklahoma Man Charged After Allegedly Covering Up the Murder of the Woman His Wife Was Having an Affair With, Texas Man Continued His Date After Cops Say He Fatally Shot Someone Over $40, Autistic Artist Sebastian Franco Hopes to See Northern Lights as He Contemplates Going Completely Blind, Lori Vallow Daybell's Sister: 'You Expect Me to Just Keep Believing Without Ever Having a Question?'. In it, Chief Justice John Roberts says he wont testify Once they found their opening, they re-secured the rivet using a bolt fashioned out of soap. My name is John Anglin. 10 "My name is John Anglin," reads the letter. Marshals Service which is currently the only agency investigating the case remains skeptical. I have cancer. And it makes an offer. The mystery may never be solved, leaving us to only speculate as to what became of them. Frustrated officials tried to profile the men involved and determine who may have been chiefly responsible. Its writer said that after the escape, he lived in Seattle for several years, then North Dakota; at the time of the letters writing, he said he lived in Southern California. Authorities said at the time there was no way the trio could have swam across the frigid waters of the San Francisco bay, although the span is today tackled by triathletes. He had met them in Brazil in 1975, Brizzi said, and later gave the photos to their relatives. In December 1961, the men began using makeshift toolslike a drill powered by a vacuum cleaner motorto remove the air vents and a portion of the surrounding wall in their cells. When that happened, West had a big problem. "Morris is quiet and very intelligent," Fred Wilkinson, assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, told the Associated Press. My name is John Anglin. The men grabbed their gear, climbed the bars and pipes in the corridor, and bang! KPIX 5 exclusively obtained it from asource. The three remain on the Marshal's Service most wanted list along with photos of what they might look like today. According to History.com, the island that later became known as Alcatraz was first mapped in 1775 by Spanish explorer Juan Manuel de Ayala, who named it La Isla de los Alcatraces the Island of the Pelicans. They had nothing to lose, really. And as if that was not enough, they even figured out the perfect tool for inflating the raft: Morriss own accordion. While Morris was decidedly the brains of the escape that would take place years later, the Anglin brothers were the brawn. Inside Edition To this day, the three escapees remain on the most wanted list with photos of what they might look like today. Not only was there the Christmas card, but theories abound that the Anglins ended up in Brazil. Its isolated location made it a difficult location to get into and out of. If you announce on TV that I will be promised to first go to jail for no more than a year and get medical attention, I will write back to let you know exactly where I am. "If you announce on TV that I will be promised to first go to jail for no more than a year and get medical attention, I will write back to let you know exactly where I am. I escape (sic) from Alcatraz in June 1962 with my brother Clarence and Frank Morris. The likes of Al Scarface Capone, Frank The Owl Banghar, and Whitey Bulger are just a few that called the prison home. Escape from Alcatraz: US Marshals Service share new, age Marshal Service, however, took jurisdiction of all federal escapes in 1978 and considers the case an open one. Quietly, they tiptoed to the roofs edge and then shimmied down 50 feet of pipes. UPDATE:Relative Of Escaped Alcatraz Inmates Speaks Out About Letter. His grave is in Argentina under another name. Prison guards found dummy heads made of plaster, paint and human hair in the cells the next morning. "Think about it. At the time the letter was sent he was reportedly living in southern California. Can you imagine how he felt in that moment, after all those months of planning? Yes we all made it that night but barely, said the letter. ", The letter makes an offer: "If you announce on TV that I will be promised to just go to jail for no more than a year and get medical attention I will write back to let you know exactly where I am". John Anglin Thats why we consider this particular escape to be the only successful one; 12 of the others resulted in the inmates either being recaptured or killed, and while an additional attempt the one made on Dec. 16, 1937 by Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe ended up with the inmates simply missing, its highly likely that they drowned in the San Francisco Bay, according to Alcatraz History. They werent after all, penning long-form essays on the regular. Only three of them could make it out their cells! And why was there no attempt made to follow up with John Anglin or verify this possible lead? (Alcatraz itself closed in 1963, not because its reputation as an escape-proof purgatory diminished but because its upkeep became too expensive to sustain.) But in reality, its a testament to the fact that Alcatraz was the place prisoners get sent who have a knack for escaping because escape was supposed to be impossible. I escape from Alcatrazin June 1962 with my brother Clarence and Frank Morris. In fact, inmate John Paul Scott made his escape in December 1962, just months after the Anglins and Morris fled. (He was, however, suffering from hypothermia and quickly recaptured.). The Rocks unique geographic location made it an ideal place to build a prison. Babyak was 15 years old and livingon the island with her familywhen the men broke free. But there is one asterisk: The matter ofJohn and Clarence Anglin and Frank Morris, who disappeared on a June night in 1962 and were never found. The letter states that Frank Morris died in 2008, while Clarence Anglin died in 2011, according to KPIX 5. In it, Anglin claimed that Morris had died in 2008 and his brother in 2011. Letter Im 83 years old and in bad shape. In what the Anglin family would later point out as suspicious, Alfred was said to have been electrocuted during an escape attempt that came just days before he was set to be paroled. They set up a secret workshop on the top of their cells, where they built and hid what they needed to escape. The letter, which was originally sent to a San Francisco police station in 2013, also explained that Frank Morris died in 2008 and Clarence Anglin died in 2011. From this material they created dummy heads. While serving there, he met the acquaintance of two men named John and Clarence Anglin. At Alcatraz, they were reunited with Frank Morris, an inmate whom they had met at another prison and whoin addition to purportedly having a high IQalso had a penchant for escapes: He had broken out of a Louisiana facility where he had been serving time for a bank robbery, and was sent to Alcatraz after he was arrested for burglary in 1960. I escape [sic] from Alcatraz in June 1962 with my brother Clarence and Frank Morris, it reads. For the next 29 years, it housed some of the most violent and ruthless criminals the nation every knew. Whether they made it safely to freedom or perished in the I have cancer. About 60 years have passed since three inmates from the federal prison on Alcatraz escaped, never to be seen again. Morris and the Anglin brothers knew each other from serving time in prison together prior to their time on Alcatraz Island. 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Theft, robbery, and burglary became his trades, but his true specialty was escaping prisons. As luck would have it, they all managed to be placed next to each other. In 1963, J. Campbell Bruce published Escape from Alcatraz, a history of the prison and those who had attempted to flee it, including Morris and the Anglins. By subscribing to this BDG newsletter, you agree to our. The FBI says theyused a homemade drill made from a broken vacuum cleaner motor to widen the vents. My brother died in 2011. Full article Trump plan to offer citizenship to 1.8m, Full article Casey Affleck pulls out of 2018 Oscars, Full article Las Vegas survivor's amazing recovery, Posted byBiodun Iginlaat4:14 PMEmail This, Labels:Alcatraz escape,bbc news,Clarence Anglin,Frank Morris,Fugitive John Anglin,Kathy DiNuzzo and Biodun Iginla,US Marshals Service. A letter was received by police in San Francisco in 2013, in which the writer claimed to be John Anglin. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. In order to fit four men, the raft was going to have to be big, and the seams needed to hold to keep them out of the water with conditions rife for drowning. Its possible that Brizzi and Widners accounts, sensational as they are, could be accurate. CBS San Francisco obtained the letter which says that John Anglin was 83 years old and that he was diagnosed with cancer. Pipes were rusted and leaked, walls were eroded from pipes leaking salt water, and seals to vents were eaten away by salt water in the air. New evidence presented in a 2015 History Channel specialshowsa photoallegedlyshowingescaped brothers John and Clarence Anglin in Brazil - 13 years after the great escape. The air ventilation screens were 6 x 9 hardly enough room to fit a full grown man. What did Roberts say in his letter about about Supreme Court ethics? Their story was then adapted into the hit 1979 movie Escape From Alcatraz, starring Clint Eastwood as Morris and Fred Ward and Jack Thibeau as John and Clarence Anglin, respectively. But the Anglins had another advantage. It says they had gathered more than50 raincoats they converted into makeshift life preservers and a 6x14-footrubber raft, "the seams carefully stitched together and vulcanized by the hot steam pipes in the prison." So they had to chisel them wider. Im 83 years old and in bad shape. A morning head count revealed just thatfake heads but no bodies to go along with them. The men were gone, which triggered prison officials to reach out to the FBIs San Francisco office. The US Marshals Service has committed to finding the men until they find credible evidence as to their fate, or the men turn 99 years old. After six months of preparation and gathering of materials, their plan was complete! Between 1934 and 1963, a total of 36 inmates attempted 14 separate escapes. Anglin's cell is now a favorite stop for tourists who can see the vent he squeezed through when he and the others made their break, then floated off the island in a homemade raft. John Anglin He, John, said he was 83 and suffering from cancer. "I can see why the FBI would consider it inconclusive because there's no leads here that you can go further with. And if so, why keep this handwritten note hidden from the public for five years? I have cancer.". I have cancer. We have no way of knowing but its curious all the same. Subscribe to the Secrets of the Dead Newsletter, Scanning the Pyramids Experts Answer Your Questions on Reddit, From Cleopatra to Roosevelt Historys Famous Romantics, Medieval French Coins, Ancient Mummy Wrappings and More Unearthed Secrets for July, Germanys Stonehenge, 9,000 Year Old Tools Found and More Unearthed Secrets, Roman Soldier Rescue Mission, Thrift Store Dal and More Unearthed Secrets. They eventually made it out through the ventilator that led them to the prisonroof. Both had also tried to run from chain gangs. Alcatraz was a decrepit old pile of bricks by the time they arrived. Natalie Dreier, Cox Media Group National Content Desk, 60 years later, three escaped Alcatraz prisoners have still not been found. The note only adds to the speculation and makes us wonder that if law enforcement was so sure of their original conclusion. The air vents that had been displaced were usually covered with items in their cells, like a suitcase or cardboard. The senselessness of such an act led some to believe Alfred may have been killed by officials badgering him about his brothers escape. The US Marshals Service took jurisdiction of the case in 1978 and considers it still open. Robbers John Anglin, his brother Clarence and Frank Morris would escape the notorious jail in California. All four already had something in common when they got there! More than 55 years and oneClint Eastwood movielater, the escape has earned its place in history as the most infamousprison break of the 20thcentury. According to CBS, the letter read: My name is John Anglin. This is no joke, the letter reads. What is sort of interesting, though, is this: The Anglin brothers were David Widners uncles and although Widner told CBS News in a follow-up report, I really havent come to a conclusion whether I believe that its John reaching out or not, he also noted that for a number of years following the escape, his grandmother would randomly receive roses. First published on January 22, 2018 / 11:49 PM. It had only been loosened before, this loud move was necessary to open it. Diane Abbotts comments on racism were antisemitic, says Keir A mysterious letter has come to light purportedly from one of three inmates who famously escaped Alcatraz in 1962. WOLF: The Supreme Court sent a letter, signed by all nine justices, to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Aletterallegedlywritten by one of the escapees recentlycame to light. Marshals Service). It was the night before June 12, 1962 and all through the prison, not a creature was stirring except four disgruntled inmates preparing to risk their lives to escape their prison sentences. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. The pipes they climbed to get to the roof should have also provided their way out. The FBI said that between 1934 and when the prison closed in 1963, 36 men tried to escape in 14 separate attempts. 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. Another lead cropped up when a nurse provided a deathbed confession by a man who said he was an accomplice the night of the escape. The daring escape was immortalized in the 1979 film Escape From Alcatraz, which starred Fred Ward as John Anglin, Jack Thibeau as Clarence Anglinand Clint Eastwood as Frank Morris. If the three did survive these treacherous waters, as the letter claims, they would have outlived the prison. ", Today, Alcatraz is a museum and popular tourist destination. There is absolutely no reason to believe that any of them would have changed their lifestyle and became completely law abiding citizens after this escape, the U.S. Yes we all made it that night but barely! I escape [sic] from Alcatraz, Richmond station of the San Francisco Police Department in 2013, inmates either being recaptured or killed, History Channel special posited that the inmates had survived, museum maintained by the National Park Service. The Anglins were known to be strong swimmers as kids; Morris was said to have engaged in an intense exercise regimen to prepare for the effort. Chief Justice Roberts Declines to Testify Before Congress Over "Handwriting samples of all three escapees, John Anglin, Clarence Anglin and Frank Morris, were compared to the anonymous letter, and the results were deemed inconclusive," O'Keefe said. "