Share

Baby Face Nelson biography

1 photo

Quick Facts

  • PLACE OF DEATH: Barrington, Illinois
more about Baby Face

Best Known For

"Baby Face" Nelson was a gangster, bank robber and triggerman who work for Al Capone and John Dillinger.


Synopsis

Lester J. Gillis (aka: "Baby Face" Nelson) was born in Chicago, Illinois on December 6, 1908. He started in crime at the age of 13, and worked for Al Capone. He was arrested in 1931 but escaped and began a series of bank robberies, two with John Dillinger. After Dillinger's death,

Contents

J. Edgar Hoover announced that Nelson was now "Public Enemy No. 1." He was killed in a shootout with the FBI in 1934.

Profile

Bank robber. Born Lester J. Gillis in Chicago, Illinois, to Belgian immigrants. Nelson, who was nicknamed after his youthful appearance, started in pettycrime in his native Chicago at the age of 13, and moved on to labor racketeering for Al Capone in 1929. He was dismissed by Capone and other crimebosses in because of the excessive violence of his vicious killings.

In 1931, Nelson was arrested and given a sentence of one year to life in the state prison. That sentence would be short-lived however; in early 1932, Baby Face overpowered a guard during transport and escaped. It was then that he began robbing banks, a career that gained him nationwide notoriety.

Nelson and legendary criminal John Dillinger joined up for two robberies in 1934, shortly after Dillinger's original gang dissolved. On July 22, 1934, Dillinger was ambushed and killed by F.B.I. agents outside the Biograph Theater in Lincoln Park, Chicago. The next day, F.B.I. director J. Edgar Hoover announced that Nelson was the new "Public Enemy No. 1."

After Nelson and Dillinger's partner in crime, Homer Van Meter, was ambushed and killed by police in St. Paul, Minnesota, that August, Nelson became the sole survivor of the second Dillinger Gang. The F.B.I. caught up with Nelson in November of that year. During the confrontation he was shot and killed. He was 26 years old.

© 2012 A&E Television Networks. All rights reserved.

ADVERTISEMENT

GetGlue

9542636 9542636
profile id: 9542636
profile name: Baby Face Nelson
profile occupation:
related profile id: 9542636
related profile name: Baby Face Nelson
related profile occupation:
related profile img: /imported/images/Biography/Images/Profiles/N/Baby-Face-Nelson-WC-9542636-1-402.jpg
related profile URL: /people/baby-face-nelson-9542636
profile
pop
Your Connections

Sign in with Facebook to see how you and your friends are connected to famous icons.

specific profile connection
Your Friends' Connections
specific friend connection
Profile Connections
    Show More Connections
    Included In These Groups

    See all related groups

    Celebrity Connections

    Show More Connections
    Fact Check: We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn't look right, contact us!