General Enquiries

Personal Accident and Assault Insurance – John Dillinger

Share This Post

In most cases, a business insurance policy will include personal accident and assault insurance. In the event that you are transporting your weekly takings to the bank for example and someone effectively tries to rob you, it is wise in this day and age to give yourself peace of mind knowing that you are covered for this eventuality.

Not that you are particularly likely to come across someone like John Dillinger of course. A notorious robber, born in Indianapolis, Indiana in 1903, Dillinger became notorious during the Great Depression in America, earning the slightly ironic nickname of ‘Public Enemy Number One’.

John Dillinger - A Grocer's nightmare
John Dillinger – A Grocer’s nightmare

As a teenager he got involved in petty crime with his gang ‘The Dirty Dozen’ as they were known including stealing a car to impress a girl, but at the age of 21 after a short stint in the US Navy, he committed his first robbery with the aid of an accomplice, Edgar Singleton, whom he had met whilst playing baseball for Martinsville. Singleton, who was Dillinger’s first ‘real’ partner in crime, had told Dillinger about an elderly grocer who would be carrying the takings from his shop at a certain time. They had it all planned so that Dillinger would rob the old boy and Singleton would be waiting in the wings in the getaway car. So, armed with a gun and a big bolt of metal wrapped in a cloth, Dillinger approached the grocer from behind and smashed him clean over the head with the bolt. The old fella however wasn’t having a bar of it and turned round to wrestle Dillinger. In the commotion the gun went off. Dillinger ran to the getaway car.

Singleton, a notorious drunk, was nowhere to be seen and the police soon caught Dillinger who was handed a heavy prison sentence.

Upon his escape, he and various others who he had met in jail, subsequently known as ‘The Pierpont Gang’ staged some of the most daring and meticulously planned robberies ever, including a police arsenal which they robbed to get their guns from in the first place, gaining notoriety and massive press coverage. Revelling in this, Dillinger and the gang pursued ever more daring and theatrical heists, including a time when they posed as a film crew looking for a location to do a film about a bank robbery, which as it transpired is exactly what they did!

After being caught again and awaiting trial in a prison which was deemed inescapable, Dillinger again escaped and soon put together another gang which included ‘Baby Face Nelson’.

Baby Face Nelson
Baby Face Nelson

They went on another crime spree robbing half a dozen banks including one which involved a massive shoot out with police, the public getting involved too as they craved the $10,000 reward offered by the FBI. One of the gang was shot dead but Dillinger again got away.

The woman he was seeing at the time was due to be deported so did a deal with the FBI to tell them Dillinger’s whereabouts so on July 22nd 1934, outside the Marlboro Theatre FBI agents were waiting. Dillinger was shot four times, killing him.

An estimated 15,000 people got a glimpse of the dead villain as he awaited burial, such was his notoriety.

So, in summary, maybe personal accident and assault insurance is a useful little add on for your business insurance! Oh, and did I mention we offer insurance for people with criminal convictions?!!

CompareCrazy.com. The business insurance comparison site!

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Get updates and learn from the best

More To Explore

Unoccupied Property Insurance

Inflatable Minion Causes Mayhem!

Earlier in August a giant inflatable minion, which was displayed at a Dublin fairground, caused chaos at strong winds ripped it from its place. The

Do You Want To Boost Your Business?

drop us a line and keep in touch