William Raymond Nesbit (June 1, 1899 – August 6, 1983) was an American jewel thief active in the 1930s. He was born in Marshalltown, Iowa.

Background

On December 31, 1936, he killed fellow thief Harold Baker in a gunpowder explosion in

Minnehaha County Minnehaha County is a county on the eastern border of the state of South Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 197,214, making it the state's most populous county. It contains over 20% of the state's population. Its county seat is S ...

, near Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He was arrested February 26, 1937, and was convicted and sentenced on May 28, 1937, to life imprisonment, which on February 18, 1946, was commuted to 20 years incarceration. Imprisoned in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, he eventually became a "trusty" and the personal

chauffeur A chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine. Originally, such drivers were often personal employees of the vehicle owner, but this has changed to speciali ...

of the warden.

Disappearance and capture

On September 4, 1946, he failed to return from running errands, and on December 26, 1946, he was charged '' in absentia'' with unlawful flight to avoid confinement. On March 15, 1950, he became the third member of the

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

's first-ever FBI ten most wanted fugitives list, and was arrested in a cave in Saint Paul, Minnesota, three days later.

Death

Nesbit died at a hospital in Sioux City, Iowa on August 6, 1983. He had been suffering from a long illness prior to his death.

References

1899 births 1983 deaths American escapees American people convicted of murder American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Criminals from Iowa FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives Fugitives Jewel thieves People convicted of murder by South Dakota Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by South Dakota People from Marshalltown, Iowa People from Sioux Falls, South Dakota {{US-crime-bio-stub Recipients of American gubernatorial clemency