Patrolman Martin J. O'Brien

Martin J. O'Brien

Patrolman Martin O'Brien and Patrolman Francis Mulvihill were shot and killed at approximately 11:15 p.m. by four men believed to be part of the Dillinger Gang. The officers were patrolling a rural section of the old Gary Road when they stopped to talk with four men standing next to a car. Without warning, the suspects opened fire with machine guns, striking both officers multiple times. The suspects then fled the scene.

Patrolman O'Brien had served with the East Chicago Police Department for nearly 14 years. He was survived by his wife and three children.

Led by John Dillinger, the Dillinger Gang was a notorious group of Midwest bank robbers. Associates of the gang were responsible for the fatal shootings of 13 law enforcement officers in 1933 and 1934.

Two infamous members of the gang, John Dillinger and Baby Face Nelson, were shot and killed by law enforcement officers in separate incidents.

The other gang members were either murdered by criminals, shot and killed by law enforcement officers, executed for their crimes, or sentenced to time in prison.