John L. Bailey
THE LAS VEGAS SUN
June 26, 1990
FBI Agent Killed in Heist
An off-duty FBI agent was shot and killed Monday after trying to foil a bank holdup. Police arrested a suspect several hours later.
John Bailey, 47 died in surgery at University Medical Center about three hours after the incident. Bailey, a 21 year veteran of the agency and the father of two daughters, was the first FBI agent killed in the state of Nevada and 29th killed in the line of duty in the United States, according to Las Vegas agent-in-charge Jim Weller.
The robber fled Security Pacific Bank, at 1140 E. Desert Inn Road, but a suspect, Carlos Gurry, 27, was arrested in his Las Vegas apartment in mid-afternoon and brought to Metro Police headquarters for questioning. After extensive interrogation, Gurry was charged with the murder of the agent, plus bank robbery…
Bailey, who was shot four times with a large caliber pistol, was admitted in critical condition to UMC…
The robbery occurred at 11:53 a.m. when the bandit approached a teller, brandished a gun and announced the holdup… In a chance encounter, Bailey walked into the bank during the holdup…he had gone there with a subpoena for the bank records of a person he was investigating.
Bailey evidently sized up the situation, drew his gun and confronted the robber. He reportedly grabbed the robber’s gun away from him and pushed the man into a chair.
The robber then bounced out of the chair, scuffled with Bailey, got his gun back and fired six shots, four of which struck the agent.
Bailey managed to fire one shot from his service pistol that missed the bank robber but broke out the glass of the bank’s front door…
Customers and bank employees dove for cover when the
shooting started. Those who looked up immediately afterward saw the robber flee through the door and jump into a waiting car that had been parked just outside.
Bailey lay bleeding on the bank’s floor until paramedics arrived minutes later. His gun was beside him and currency from the holdup was scattered nearby…
Holdup witnesses said the bandit was dressed in bizarre fashion and wore strange makeup to disguise his physical appearance…
The robber also wore a large Afro-type wig, a large gauze bandage on his left cheek and heavy white powder cosmetics on his dark skin to make it look lighter, according to investigators. He also wore sunglasses and his left arm was in a sling, they said.
Plaque Location & Image
North Wall Column 13 Row D View The Plaque