Just before 10 A.M. on March 6, 1934, the John Dillinger and Baby Face Nelson gang robbed the Security National Bank and Trust in downtown Sioux Falls.
The robbers were armed with Thompson
submachine guns. They stormed the bank and made off with $46,000. Even as their green Packard car approached the bank,
several employees had remarked that it looked like a holdup car. Four of the robbers entered the bank. Two other remained outside firing into the air to warn onlookers. Hale Keith, a policeman who had
approached to investigate, was spotted by George "Baby Face" Nelson. Nelson fired at him and Keith was seriously wounded but survived.
A crowd of 30 hostages was forced to surround the gang in a human shield and walk them out to their getaway car. 5 female bank tellers were taken hostage. They were forced to stand on the running boards of the car as a shield from police gunfire.
During the get-a-way, the gang released one of their hostages on Minnesota avenue. They stole two other cars and eventually made their way out of town. Police and airplanes trailed them for several miles. There were several shootouts during the chase, but the gang got away. Their remaining four hostages were released near Shindler.
Despite the gunfire and Keith's wounds, no one was killed during the robbery. The gang's crime spree came to an end four months later when John Dillinger was gunned down by the FBI. But whether Dillinger was actually at the Sioux Falls robbery remains in question. What is known, is that none of the stolen 46-thousand dollars was ever recovered.
Production help is provided by Doctor Brad Tennant, Professor of History at Presentation College.