George Leonidas Leslie
| George Leonidas Leslie | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1840 |
| Died | 1878 |
| Body discovered | June 4, 1878 in Yonkers, New York |
| Alma mater | University of Cincinnati |
| Occupation | Criminal |
| Spouse(s) | Mary Henrietta Coath |
George Leonidas Leslie (1840–1878) was an architect turned bank robber.
Early life and education
Leslie studied architecture at the University of Cincinnati and graduated with high honors. After graduating from college and experiencing the deaths of both his parents in 1867, Leslie closed his architecture business and the family brewery to move to New York City.
Personal life
While planning a heist of the Kensington National Bank in Philadephia, Leslie stayed at the boarding house of Mary Coath. There he met her 15-year-old daughter, Mary Henrietta Coath. Leslie married Mary Henrietta Coath after a short courtship. After their wedding, they moved to New York, where they lived the life of a society couple. Mary may or may not have been aware of his criminal activities. Mary returned to Philadelphia after Leslie's death and died in her mother's boarding house of tuberculosis in 1892, at the age of 35.
Criminal activity
In New York, Leslie operated as a safecracker for ten years and was one of the most successful bank robbers in New York state. By 1874, he became the head of a gang of bank robbers. However, his involvement in these robberies was not known until after his death in 1878, even though when members of his gang were caught they told police that Leslie had planned the robberies. In 1872, Leslie traveled to Philadelphia. While planning a heist of the South Kensington National Bank, he posed as an IRS agent named George L. Howard.
Leslie spent up to three years planning a robbery. After selecting the next heist, he would obtain, if possible, the building's blueprints. His architectural background allowed him to build scale models of his intended targets. He would sometimes rent a safe-deposit box or open an account at a particular bank, which gave him an excuse to spend time in the building and observe its layout and operation. Other times he would get one of his men hired as a watchman or porter and ask them to obtain this information for him.
Leslie had models of many vaults and safes used in the United States. Before he committed a robbery, Leslie would find out what type of vault or safe his target used. Then, he would spend months figuring out how to open it without the combination.[1] Leslie used a device that he called the "little joker," a wire device inserted into a bank safe's lock in advance to facilitate the robbery. Over time and extended use, the lock's tumblers left dents or marks on the wire that recorded the numbers that made up the combination. Use of this tool required George to enter the bank at least twice prior to executing a robbery, once to place the device and a second time to retrieve it.
When he was certain that the robbery could be committed without him getting caught, Leslie would select his accomplices and explain to them how to execute the robbery. Sometimes he would set up a room to resemble the inside of the target so that his men could practice the robbery while Leslie watched.
It is estimated that Leslie's gang was responsible for 80% of the bank robberies in the United States between 1874 and 1884.[2] During this time, he planned and executed over a hundred robberies and stole between seven and twelve million dollars.
Later in life, he became a consultant for other robbers. For a price, he would travel to wherever the robbery was to take place and plan the operation. On June 4, 1878, his body was found with a small pearl-handled, two-shot pistol at Tramp's Rock, in Yonkers, New York. He had been shot twice, once in the heart and once in the head. Leslie's murder was never solved, although there is speculation it was related to Leslie's romantic involvement with the sister of one of his associates.
See also
Sources
- Asbury, Herbert. Gangs of New York. Published in 1927.
- Conway, J. North (2009). King of Heists: The Sensational Bank of Robbery of 1878 that Shocked America. The Lyons Pesss. ISBN 978-1-59921-538-9.
- Walling, George Washington (1972) [1887]. Recollections of a New York chief of police. New York: Caxton Book Concern Limited. ISBN 0-87585-133-9.
- Pinkerton, Allan. Professional thieves and the detective: with a sketch by the author how he became a detective etc. Repr. of the 1881 version.