The Robbery of Maxwell Lackey

In 1934, letter carrier and the U.S. postal driver Maxwell Lackey was robbed on the streets of Butler, Pennsylvania, of Registered Mail valued more than $50,000. After an intensive investigation by Postal Inspectors and police, two were tried and convicted, both receiving life sentences.

The Crime

On August 23, 1934, on a quiet street in Butler, Pennsylvania, three men armed with revolvers held up postal driver Maxwell Lackey, stealing Registered Mail. The mail contained $50,000 in small bills intended for payroll. The robbers made their escape. Police had few clues to go on, other than the report made by the clearly shocked driver, Lackey. However, they suspected the criminals were headed for a hideout in Ohio. After an intensive investigation by Police and postla inspectors, the robbers were identified as Home Gibson; Lenn Bash, an ex-convict and bootlegger; and Clair Gibson

The Investigation

During the investigation, it came to light that Clair Gibson and his wife Ira were the masterminds behind the robbery. They had been planning it for months and asked for Homer and Lenn Bash's assistance. During an interview with inspectors, Bash laid out the entirety of the plan and the escape. he stated he was brought into the operation by the Gibson gamily, as well as Robert Markwood, who would later be murdered by Clair Gibson.

In an affidavit submitted by A.R. Thomas, who had known the Gibson boys since childhood, he stated seeing both Ira and Clair in the getaway cars the morning of the robbery. The four were arrested, but unfortunately Lackey had a difficult time identifying the three men, which delayed any indictment for some time.

Capture and Pinishment

Then, while being held in jail, Ira Gibson suddenly died. The death of Clair Gibson's wife and the murder of his close friend, Markwood, was too much to bear, and one month later he committed suicide within his cell. The trial for Homer Gibson and Lenn Bash finally occurred in September of 1939, and both men were found guilty.

The men were charged with aggravated assault, robbery and conspiracy. Lenn Bash was sentenced to life in the Ohio State Penitentiary with the possibility of parole in 1947. Homer Gibson was also sentenced to life at the London Ohio Prison Farm with the chance of parole in 1944.

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