BABY FACE NELSON: The DEADLY Gangster With An INNOCENT Face

0:00
[Music]
0:06
[Music]
0:16
[Music] I am Lester Joseph Gillis also known as
0:22
Babyface Nelson though I may look like just a kid that's not what I'm aiming
0:28
for but It ultimately Works in my favor more than I could have imagined some
0:34
people might have underestimated me because of my youthful appearance but behind that Angelic face was a heart of
0:40
ice and a lethal skill with a firearm when Babyface Nelson planned a
0:47
job there was no room for indecision or compassion his quick trigger finger and
0:54
willingness to shoot at Point Blank Range set him apart as a dangerous man
0:59
in situation Babyface Nelson was obviously not a role model or you would
1:05
end up very badly he wasn't a polished gangster like lucky luchano who would
1:11
take control of unions or establish a nationwide distribution network instead
1:17
he was a throwback to the days of the feared Outlaws of the Wild West he would
1:22
enter a bank with guns in hand grab the loot and shoot his way out of town the
1:29
Man known as Babyface Nelson was born Lester Joseph Gillis on December 6th
1:35
1908 in South Chicago the son of Joseph Lester was the youngest of seven
1:42
children born to George and Marie Nelson from the start he was his
1:48
mother's cherished blonde chubby cheeked baby she saw no wrong in him even as he
1:55
later became known as Public Enemy Number One refusing to believe he could harm
2:01
anyone she always thought he was taking the blame for his friend's misdeeds Lester began roaming the
2:08
streets early following his older brothers and exploring the nearby
2:13
Stockyards skipping school became a habit leading to his enrollment at St
2:19
Patrick's boarding school there he clashed with the nuns strict discipline
2:26
joining a gang led by two older Italian boys Anthony capio and future Chicago
2:32
boss Tony Accardo Lester despite his small stature he would only grow to 54
2:40
as an adult quickly gained a reputation for fearlessness and
2:46
ruthlessness Lester was 56 and weighed
2:52
133 he never backed down from a fight and earned the gang's respect maybe he
2:59
wasn't the biggest his guy and maybe he didn't get much respect at first glance but they say respect isn't given it's
3:07
earned and Lester was ready to earn it the hard way at this time Lester was
3:14
still just a kid once while playing in a friend's garage they found a gun that belonged to
3:22
the friend's father they took the gun outside and Lester pretending to be a
3:28
cowboy accidentally shot his friend in the face the bullet lodged in the boy's
3:33
jaw and he survived Lester's family was forced to pay the boy's medical bills and Lester
3:40
was sent to the County Juvenile Detention Center for 18 months he
3:45
adapted quickly and was granted weekend home visits he returned to the streets
3:51
in April 1924 and rejoined his old gang which was making money by stealing cars
3:58
dismantling them and selling the parts by the end of the summer 15-year-old
4:04
Lester was arrested again by the police while driving a stolen car Lester argued
4:11
that he didn't know the car was stolen but the judge didn't want to hear it and he was sent back to the reform school
4:18
while he was away his father took his own life after years of suffering from depression in
4:24
1925 when Lester returned the Roaring 20s were in full swing everyone seemed
4:31
to be getting rich but Lester struggled to find his place in the world of crime
4:37
he got a job at a car dealership but he wasn't living an entirely honest life he
4:43
allowed a gang of Thieves to use the place as a headquarters and soon ended up back in reform school after stealing
4:50
another car he was offered a deal for parole if he ratted out his friends but
4:55
he refused and spent another 12 months behind bars this time when he was
5:01
released he was 18 years old and warned that the next time he got into trouble
5:07
he would go to an adult prison all right I get it I definitely don't want to go to adult prison but I can't seem to stop
5:15
doing some things that aren't exactly right especially now that I know my beloved and have planted a small
5:23
seed of Hope now more than ever I need to be financially stable and don't have
5:30
time for lengthy processes in late spring of 1928 Lester met the Bonny to his Clyde
5:39
Helen she was Tiny with brown hair and blue eyes and the two fell in love
5:46
instantly but Helen was only 15 years old and her father forbade them from
5:53
marrying a few months later the couple eloped to Indiana after Helen became
5:58
pregnant she gave birth to Ronald Vincent Gillis on April 27th
6:05
1929 Lester found a job but continued his criminal activities in his spare
6:11
time gradually he learned more became more cunning and started to climb the
6:18
criminal ladder he became a kind of armed thief and with his gang began
6:25
breaking into mansions in some of the nicer suburbs they would break in tie up
6:31
the residents demand to know where the safe was and steal the jewelry and
6:37
anything else they could carry this was just one example of the multiple assaults They carried out on January 6th
6:46
1930 they broke into the home of editor-in-chief Charles arter after
6:52
subduing him they tied him up with adhesive tape cut the phone lines and
6:57
made off with $25,000 in jewelry the Chicago newspapers dubbed
7:02
them the tape Bandits but in the world of crime you are nothing without a nickname and this
7:09
guy wanted to be called Big George but we all know Nelson was short so no one
7:17
believed it as he entered his later years he got his real nickname this
7:22
happened during the robbery of the Chicago mayor's wife whom they mugged on
7:27
the sidewalk and stole all her jewelry it was a big story in the newspapers the
7:33
next day what the mayor's wife said about him was the origin of his nickname
7:39
she mentioned that he had a baby face that he was handsome but looked like little more than a boy with dark hair
7:46
wearing a gray coat and a brown felt hat it wasn't what he expected in fact he
7:53
didn't like it at all but as I mentioned before in the end it all worked to my favor George Nelson now also known as
8:02
Babyface Nelson actually hated that nickname and it was in everyone's best
8:07
interest not to mention it in his presence just calling him George was
8:12
fine anyway one thing led to another and he found himself working for face yes
8:19
the renowned and legendary Al Capone Nelson was able to sign on as a tough
8:24
guy with a gun in a branch of Capone's organization based in
8:30
Cicero essentially he was muscle either anti-un or pro-union in the
8:37
1920s it was a good time for him but Nelson wasn't much of a team player
8:43
Capone's men had to be followers and he for his part didn't want to be anyone's
8:51
property so slowly he drifted away to forge his own path I've worked for
8:59
Capone I've paid my dues but I prefer to be my own boss while the big shots make huge
9:06
headlines in Chicago in the early 30s I apply my trade quietly and make a
9:11
fortune many of the nationally known bank robberies I participated in weren't
9:17
credited to me until much later which I believe spoke volumes about my professionalism as a criminal during the
9:24
winter of 1931 most of our gang members including myself were apprehended a
9:31
prominent City newspaper dubbed our leader George Babyface Nelson who
9:36
received a one-year sentence at the Illinois State Penitentiary he aimed to behave and set
9:43
an example as a prisoner hoping for early release however in January
9:49
1932 he received devastating news the county leveled new charges for multiple
9:56
past robberies the jury swiftly found him guilty in just 30 minutes sentencing
10:02
him to several additional years following the trial he was escorted by two guards for transport back to prison
10:10
he was cuffed to one of them as they boarded a train Bound for Chicago from
10:16
there they hailed a cab at the station to reach the prison located a few miles
10:22
outside the city they underestimated what was needed to keep an outlaw under
10:28
control suddenly Lester pulled out a revolver
10:33
and aimed it at the ribs of one of the guards seizing his weapon and directing
10:38
the driver towards Chicago in the suburbs he forced them out of the taxi
10:44
and successfully escaped how Lester acquired the gun
10:49
remains a mystery some speculate it was slipped into his pocket on the train
10:54
platform While others say his wife Helen passed it to him
10:59
during the trial Lester later claimed his sister left it in the train restroom
11:07
hours later police raided Lester's mother's home looking for him she
11:12
innocently replied I thought he was with you soon after Lester contacted his
11:19
mother reassuring her not to worry explaining he couldn't bear to return to
11:24
prison and would prefer death eventually he f West and found refuge in Reno
11:32
Nevada reportedly working for Smuggler Joe parente during this time he likely
11:38
first crossed paths with bank robber Eddie B teaming up with B he returned to the
11:47
Midwest the following summer and committed his first major bank heist on August 18th
11:54
1933 they carefully studied the bank planning the robbery and noting the
11:59
necessity for heavy Weaponry preferably a Tommy Gun they needed at least six men
12:07
three inside and three outside along with a getaway car stocked with supplies
12:14
to mislead the police a medical kit water gasoline a shovel and an axe this
12:22
successful job convinced Nelson to lead his own gang through his connections
12:29
recruited Homer Van Meter Tommy Carroll and Eddie green along with two other
12:35
local thieves on October 23rd 1933 Nelson and his gang robbed the
12:42
First National Bank of Brainard Minnesota making off with
12:47
$32,000 Witnesses reported Nelson firing wildly at bystanders during their escape
12:54
after picking up his wife Helen and their four-year-old son Nelson fled with
12:59
his gang to San Antonio Texas on December 9th a woman in San Antonio
13:06
alerted the police to the gang's presence nearby 2 Days Later Tommy Carrol was cornered by detectives and
13:13
opened fire killing detective perin and wounding detective Al Hardman Nelson's
13:20
entire gang except Nelson himself fled San Antonio he and his wife traveled West to
13:28
San Francisco Bay where he recruited John Paul Chase and negri Fatso for a
13:34
new wave of bank robberies during the following spring John Paul Chase negri
13:40
Fatso and Babyface Nelson were cut from the same dirty cloth plotting Grand
13:47
schemes together Nelson had a geographic diversity in his criminal career that
13:54
many Outlaws couldn't claim on March 3rd
13:59
1934 the notorious criminal John Dillinger famously crafted his wooden
14:04
gun to escape from a jail in Indiana although the details remain debated
14:11
suspicion arose that the breakout was orchestrated and funded by members of
14:16
Nelson's newly formed gang possibly with some form of agreement Dillinger
14:22
spectacular Escape embarrassed National authorities leaving them desperately
14:28
needing people to work with since his gang had been arrested and now faced
14:33
death sentences and life imprisonment to the dismay of federal agencies he partnered with Babyface
14:42
Nelson Nelson was exceptional with a gun and absolutely Fearless in
14:48
shootouts though to be honest even the bank robbers themselves were terrified of Nelson's ruthless methods they wanted
14:55
him on their heists because they knew he was ring iable In the Heat of battle
15:02
they joined forces and apparently baby Nelson was the designated leader of that gang but Dillinger hogged all the
15:10
headlines they were even identified as Dillinger's second gang what a bunch of
15:15
idiots I'm the guy it's my team my planning my style the gang shouldn't be
15:22
Dillinger's gang it should be babya fa's gang with John
15:27
Dillinger well whatever the robbery yielded around
15:33
$49,000 Nelson critically wounded officer hail keing with a burst from his
15:39
submachine gun as the officer arrived at the scene Dillinger and another gang
15:44
member stayed in the car while Lester and two others entered Security National Bank announcing it was a holdup from the
15:53
outset there was confusion Lester gave orders to the crowd while another Thief
15:59
gave conflicting instructions further terrorizing the people amidst the chaos
16:06
they failed to notice the central operator was still on the phone alerting
16:12
that the bank was being robbed Lester losing his temper leapt onto the counter
16:18
demanding to know who activated the alarm threatening death if they moved
16:24
Dillinger and another gang member restored order when they entered Ed the
16:30
first officer to arrive was taken hostage inside the bank at gunpoint
16:36
machine gun made Lester rush to the window to see what was happening he climbed onto a desk and spotted a third
16:43
officer stopping in front of the bank on his motorcycle with his machine gun at his
16:48
hip shots rang out as Lester fired hitting the officer four times they
16:55
gathered the money and formed the hostages in a circle around them as they exited they forced them onto the running
17:02
boards of the car and drove away later the hostages reported that the robbers
17:08
were arguing about how to proceed on March 13th the gang struck again this
17:15
time at the First National Bank of Mason City Iowa Dillinger and four other gang
17:22
members parked at the rear of the bank with Dillinger and two others entering
17:28
while Lester remained outside the manager tried to flee to his office but was pursued they entered the
17:36
Bank lobby and announced the robbery the bank was equipped with a bulletproof
17:41
security cage which the gang shot at but failed to breach the guard hesitated to
17:47
shoot into the crowd so he instead threw tear gas into the lobby in the alley
17:54
Lester saw a young man lurking by the wall and ordered him to stop but the man
17:59
didn't comply and shots rang out Lester wounded a man named raymon James in the
18:07
legs James fled from the bank upon hearing the shots the gang collected
18:14
$2,000 and coralled the hostages in a protective Circle as they headed to
18:20
their getaway car meanwhile Town's people had already started Gathering
18:25
outside and many watched from nearby building Windows Among The Spectators was a judge
18:32
who grabbed his revolver from his desk and aimed at Dillinger he fired hitting
18:38
Dillinger in the shoulder causing him to spin the judge also managed to hit
18:43
another gang member in the shoulder as they exited the bank despite being wounded they all got into the car and
18:51
drove out of town shooting at any police who pursued them the gang needed a place
18:57
to hide and chose a small Resort hidden in the woods of Wisconsin called Little
19:02
Bohemia the hotel owner Emil wanat greeted the gang by name but insisted he
19:09
had no knowledge of their identities until Friday night this likely happened
19:15
when wanet was playing cards with part of the gang and Dillinger won around
19:20
collecting the pot wannet glimpsed Dillinger's gun hidden in his jacket and
19:26
realized Nelson and the others also had shoulder holsters eventually Amil wanet alerted
19:33
authorities to the gang's Presence at the hotel when teams in Chicago led by
19:40
special agent Melvin pervis were notified they had to get to Little Bohemia they didn't have time to prepare
19:49
they didn't have time to do anything not even to take a look and see what they were dealing with geographically they
19:56
were Flying Blind but they had two of America's Most Wanted men in their
20:02
sights What followed wasn't just one of the greatest shootouts in American criminal history but also one of the
20:10
most embarrassing and tragic chapters in FBI History Edgar Hoover Melvin pervis
20:19
and all their boys had been chasing me and Dillinger all over but they always came up short what a bunch of amateurs
20:27
they got the tip that Dillinger and I were holed up at a lodge in Wisconsin and it seemed like a sure thing to NAB
20:33
us both but everything that could go wrong for the FBI at Little Bohemia went
20:39
terribly wrong on Sunday April 22nd
20:44
1934 the place was packed with people drinking dancing and some of the gang
20:50
members were playing cards in the main house outside federal agents had arrived
20:56
and were taking positions but in in the darkness they failed to completely surround the building
21:03
unfortunately the men were Civilian Conservation core workers enjoying their
21:09
day off they got into their car turned up the radio and began driving towards
21:16
the exit the agents assumed the car was full of gangsters as they approached one
21:22
of the agents yelled stop but the music inside the car was so loud that the men
21:28
didn't hear them the agent yelled again but the car didn't stop in fact it
21:34
accelerated gunshots rang out as the agent opened fire with Thompson's submachine guns at the three workers one
21:43
of them died instantly and the other two were seriously injured the authorities
21:49
had mistakenly killed innocent people the FBI's impromptu operation couldn't
21:54
have started off worse back at the lodge the festive atmosphere abruptly ended
22:01
with the sound of gunfire outside it served as a warning for the gang members
22:06
who quickly got up grabbed their weapons and rushed towards the door nervous
22:12
agents fired at any movement they saw Dillinger and two other members of the
22:18
gang fired from the second floor of the lodge and made their way out through the back door managing to escape meanwhile
22:27
Lester who was in a cabin with Helen grabbed his modified pistol with a Tommy
22:32
Gun grip and a 50 round magazine instead of attempting to flee he ran towards the
22:39
main Lodge building he fired his homemade submachine gun at agent Melvin pervis
22:46
who was taking cover at the side of the building another agent eventually shot
22:52
Nelson causing him to flee into the woods 90 minutes later Lester emerged
22:58
from the forest and headed to a nearby Lakefront house owned by a local couple
23:04
finding the couple in the living room Lester burst in through the door and instructed them to stay calm assuring
23:11
them that if they followed his orders no harm would come to them he ordered them
23:17
to put on their coats and led them outside to their car directing the man
23:22
to drive their old and worn out automobile after traveling a few miles
23:28
Le realized he needed a better getaway vehicle he forced the man to stop in
23:34
front of another Lakefront house and instructed him to knock on the door
23:40
stepped inside to reach the new place but before Lester arrived at the house
23:46
someone had already called the police to report a strange car on the road heading
23:51
towards their home the officers stopped the car and tried to identify themselves
23:58
from their their own vehicle but before they could finish their sentence Lester jumped out of the car and said I Know
24:05
Who You bastards are and I know you have vests too so I'm going to give you both
24:12
high and low then shots were fired agent Newman
24:17
special agent Bal and Sheriff Christensen were easy Targets in the
24:22
front seat of the vehicle all three were injured and Bal died from his injuries
24:28
during the shootout the hostages ran and Lester jumped back in the car and
24:34
escaped eventually Dillinger was still looking to add more members to The Gang
24:40
after a meeting in Buffalo Charles Arthur Floyd better known as Pretty Boy Floyd joined the gang now it was a star
24:50
lineup three of America's Most Wanted criminals were together together and
24:56
ready to wreak havoc it didn't take long for them to arrive in Indiana and Enter
25:01
The Merchants National Bank with guns in hand they took positions inside the bank
25:07
and Dillinger fired at the ceiling announcing it was a robbery officer Howard Wagner heard the shots and ran
25:14
toward the front of the bank a gang member shot the officer who stumbled
25:20
across the street and fell dead the gang collected $5,000 surrounded an escape car with
25:27
hostages and fled firing at the police through the rear window this would be
25:33
the first and last robbery of the star
25:38
lineup on July 22nd 1934 in Chicago John
25:44
Dillinger was shot and killed by federal agents after leaving a theater Pretty
25:50
Boy Floyd was gunned down in a cornfield on October 22nd
25:56
1934 with John Dillinger's death Babyface Nelson was named Public Enemy
26:02
Number One ex she didn't want him captured alive fearing the police would
26:08
torture him to the end his mother refused to believe her son had shot
26:13
anyone she always thought it was the bad boys with him who would cause trouble
26:19
the death of Babyface Nelson occurred in the fall of
26:25
1934 the shootout that ended his life took place on the outskirts of Chicago
26:31
in the town of barington and it also claimed the lives of federal agents
26:37
Herman Hollis and Samuel cowy the shootout erupted in barington when
26:42
Nelson along with Helen Gillis and John Paul Chase was driving a stolen Ford
26:48
towards Chicago on State Route 14 always on the lookout for law enforcement
26:55
Nelson spotted a sedan driven by some FB bi agents traveling in the opposite
27:00
direction the agents and the fugitives recognized each other and after several u-turns by both vehicles Nelson went
27:09
after the agent's car Nelson and Chase fired at the agents shattering their
27:14
car's windshield after sharply swerving to avoid an oncoming milk truck the
27:20
agents skidded into a field anxiously waiting for Nelson and Chase the agents
27:26
didn't know that a shot fired by one of them had pierced the radiator of Nelson's Ford nor that the Ford was
27:34
being pursued by a Hudson car driven by two more agents Herman Hollis and Samuel
27:41
cowy as a result the initial two agents were unaware of what happened next with
27:47
their vehicle losing power and their pursuers trying to force them off the road Nelson veered into the entrance of
27:55
the North Parkside neighborhood of barington Hollis and cowy gaining more than 30 m
28:01
on them stopped in front of Nelson's car and blocked his path at a corner they
28:07
got out and took cover behind their vehicle the ensuing shootout was witnessed by more than 30 people
28:14
Nelson's wife fled for cover at his request advancing toward the agents
28:20
Nelson fired so rapidly with a rifle that bystanders mistook it for a machine gun six machine gun bullet bullets from
28:29
Cy finally struck Nelson in the chest and stomach before Nelson left Cy
28:35
mortally wounded with gunshots in the same places meanwhile Hollis with his
28:42
shotgun brought Nelson down with a shot to the legs as soon as Nelson could
28:48
stand Hollis possibly already wounded moved to better cover behind a utility
28:55
pole but as he drew his pistol he was killed by a bullet to the head before he
29:00
could return fire nelson stood over hollis's body for a moment but realizing
29:06
he was dead limped toward the agent's car Nelson was too severely injured to
29:13
drive so Chase took the wheel and both men along with Nelson's wife fled Nelson
29:20
had been hit by nine bullets one of C's bullets struck his torso and ate of
29:27
hollis's shotgun pellets hit his legs Nelson instructed Chase to take them to
29:32
a safe house in Illinois his wife sat with him until his final moments he told
29:38
her to give his love to his family and then whispered it's getting dark I can't
29:44
see you anymore finally Nelson died in bed with his wife by his side his body
29:52
was found outside the cemetery naked and wrapped in a dirty yellow sheet and an
29:57
IND Indian patented blanket a pillowcase was wrapped around his abdomen and a
30:03
dirty handkerchief covered a bullet hole of the 17 machine gun wounds and 10 shotgun pellets that hit him the first
30:11
one was fatal Helen fled and became the
30:16
first woman to be on the FBI's most wanted list she was arrested the day
30:23
before Thanksgiving and eventually sentenced to a year and a half in a women's prison Helen had placed the
30:31
blanket over Nelson's body since he always hated the cold if you enjoyed the
30:37
story of The Lunatic Babyface Nelson don't forget to like subscribe and hit
30:43
the Bell icon for more gripping Tales From history's underworld stay tuned for our next
30:50
episode thank you for watching

This livestream is currently offline

BABY FACE NELSON: The DEADLY Gangster With An INNOCENT Face

Survival Horror Channel

1,000 Deaths Ordered: The Rise and Fall of the Mafia's Most Brutal Boss

The Most Dangerous Man in America Faced the Rat Pack — Dean Martin Shut Him Down

Lucky Luciano's Last Days | The Mafia Boss Nobody Remembered

The Black Gangster Who Made The Mafia Kneel

The Black Mafia: God's Soldiers? Or Brutal Killers?

Global Mafia — S01 E01 : Black Mafia Meets Italian Families

Asian Crime — S01 E01 : Triads of Hong Kong: Secret Societies

Latin Cartels — S01 E01 : Medellín & Cali: The Birth of Cartels

Black Mafia — S01 E04 : The Muslim Connection & Nation of Islam Ties

Chicago Outfit — S01 E01 : Al Capone & The King of Crime

Irish Mob — S01 E01 : Southie Streets & The Birth of the Mob

Italian Mafia — S01 E01 : Prohibition Birth & NYC Families

Black Mafia — S01 E03 : The Original Kings & The Rise of Samuel Christian

Black Mafia — S01 E02 : From Street Crews to Syndicate

The Junior Black Mafia: How Teens Became the Most Feared Gang

This livestream is currently offline

Up next in 10

BABY FACE NELSON: The DEADLY Gangster With An INNOCENT Face

Survival Horror Channel