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Public Enemy No. 1: The Case of the Brady Gang

Suspect: Alfred Brady, Clarence Lee Shaffer, and James Dalhover
Accusation: Murder, Robbery, Resisting Arrest
Location: Bangor, Maine
Date: 1937
Victim: Multiple victims, including Paul Minneman

Late in 1935, Albert Brady (1910-1937) and Clarence Lee Shaffer, Jr. (1916- 1937) formed a criminal gang in Indiana. The so-called “Brady Gang” allegedly engaged in over one hundred and fifty robberies and four murders in the Midwest region, Kentucky and Maryland. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) got involved when the gang crossed state lines with stolen goods. In 1936, police arrested Brady, Shaffer, and new gang member Rhuel “James” Dalhover (1906-1938) and briefly held them in Chicago before they escaped. The gang fled to Baltimore, by this time wanted under the National Stolen Property Act and the National Motor Vehicle Theft Act.

While in Baltimore, Brady, Shaffer, and Dalhover claimed to be Maine businessmen and routinely crossed state lines to rob banks and retail stores. While in White County, Indiana, the gang killed State Police officer Paul Minneman (1904-1937).

In September of 1937, the gang arrived in Bangor, Maine. They purchased several guns at Dakin Sporting Goods and requested additional weapons and ammunition. The suspicious staff notified police. After a couple of days in Connecticut, the gang returned to Maine to purchase more weapons and requested a machine gun. Again, the store manager alerted the authorities.

Agent William “Bill” Nitschke from the Boston FBI field office traveled to Bangor with photographs of the Brady Gang. After confirming their identity, the FBI and Maine State Police planned to apprehend the fugitives at Dakin Sporting Goods store. The downtown Bangor stakeout ended in a legendary shootout, which killed both Brady and Shaffer.

Authorities arrested Dalhover and took him to Indiana to stand trial for Officer Minneman’s death. Convicted, Rheul James Dalhover was executed by electric chair at Indiana State Penitentiary on November 18, 1938.