Using excerpts from the Book "Enforcement Odyssey, Massachusetts State Police," by William F. Powers, the manhunt will first be described, and then we will share the unique emotional involvement of two of our members:

It was June 15, 1959, a typical spring day in the southeastern section of the state, the gateway to Cape Cod. The tranquility did not last. Two young men walked into a liquor store in Middleboro on the "Cape Way," route 28. They minced no words. With drawn guns, they demanded receipts from the manager. It was over in a moment. Only a wild shot had punctured the morning stillness.

A frantic telephone call brought state and local police to the holdup scene. Events moved with unexpected swiftness. Trooper Daniel F. Sullivan of the Middleboro barracks and Patrolman Daniel Guertin of the local department spotted the wanted vehicle just off route 28, partially hidden in a sandy lane. Cautious, they approached the car slowly. A hail of bullets erupted from the vehicle. Sullivan and Guertin returned the fire, driving the suspects from the car and into the heavily wooded area.

A quick check of the bandit car brought an incredible discovery. Cowering in the trunk was a third man. He gasped out an amazing story, one that was shortly verified. The fugitive pair had kidnapped him in Philadelphia, holding him for ten days while driving throughout the northeast. He had recognized his captors during his long ordeal. They were not ordinary law breakers, but, rather, the notorious brothers, John and William Coyle of Philadelphia.

The Coyles were suspects in countless armed robberies, sought by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as a number of state and local enforcement agencies. They had shot and killed a Philadelphia policeman who had surprised them stealing a bottle of milk! The route 28 shootout triggered one of the most dramatic manhunts in the state's history.

Every enforcement agency in southeastern Massachusetts joined the massive search effort. Federal authorities actively participated in planning, and helped coordinate search actions. Meantime, the Philadelphia Police Department offered a $5,000. reward for John and William Coyle; dead or alive.

The massive enforcement effort centered in a five mile square area, snake infested and swarming with mosquitoes. The tense operations dragged on for two days and two nights. Many believed that the Coyles had slipped through the net; they had often avoided capture. Troopers were unconvinced. It was an eerie scene, especially during the long hours of darkness. Middleboro's woods and swamps were not the best places to spend the night tracking two known killers.

There was tremendous media coverage. Search activities caught the imagination of the public as periodic bulletins sustained the drama.

Without warning, the end came on the third morning. The desperate killers had been spotted by an alert citizen. Officers responded to the scene within minutes, surrounding the exhausted pair in a thick wood. Shots were exchanged. The fire fight continued for several minutes. Then, suddenly, it was quiet as the heavy gunfire ended abruptly

William Coyle lay mortally wounded in the damp grass. His brother John surrendered meekly. Several troopers took him into custody. Among those who were present in the final moments were Sergeant Martin A. Murphy, and Troopers Paul Conway, John J. Powers, Donald H. Gould, Francis Kane, Leonard von Flatern, Sanford Brodsky, Ralph Olszewski, John McDonald. John LaCasse and Robert Enos. More than a hundred other officers had help bring the Coyles to bay. Many had been in the deep Middleboro woods for over two days and two nights.

The brothers were returned to their native city, William for burial and John later to be convicted of the Philadelphia's officer's murder. The Coyles were gone. But the story of their wild escapade, and the fatal gunfight, would endure in the annals of the state police.

Fast Forward: 1999

Bob Enos Had Personal Connection