Federal Prohibition Agent Robert Knox Moncure

Robert Knox Moncure

Prohibition Agent Robert Moncure and Prohibition Agent Franklin Patterson were shot and killed while serving a search warrant at the home of a bootlegger at 2403 S Poinsettia Avenue in West Palm Beach, Florida.

The suspect opened fire on Agent Patterson in the kitchen and shot Agent Moncure on the front porch. Two other agents at the scene escaped without being wounded.

The suspect was arrested 20 minutes later after a brief standoff with local police. The man was acquitted due to a technicality concerning the use of a daytime warrant around the time of sunset. The suspect also said he did not know a raid was taking place and was defending his home, although there had been three recent raids resulting in several cases of liquor being confiscated. Charges that resulted in the three raids were dropped.

In 1934 the case was reopened and the suspect was convicted of assault on a federal officer and sentenced to 10 years in federal prison. He died in 1958.

Agent Moncure was a US Navy and US Merchant Marine veteran of WWI. He was survived by his wife, 4-year-old son, brother, and three sisters. His body is interred at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.