Captain’s Blog

This crime of passion and stupidity paved the way for a generation of detective novels, film noir and insurance claims. As the biggest case in Henry Flattery’s 12 years on the force, the “dumbell murder ” had dividends that paid in spades.

Twelve year old Willie Bender had been tied with a rope and stabbed in the heart by his 15-year old “friend.”

Five armed men held up Charles Froessel, former First Assistant District Attorney of Queens County, in his law office on the seventh floor of a building at 161-19 Jamaica Avenue,

Handkerchiefs were knotted over their faces. One carried a Thompson sub-machine gun, another an automatic shotgun. The third gripped a revolver in each hand. Thus they pushed through the inner door.