United States Department of the Treasury - United States Secret Service, U.S. Government
End of Watch Sunday, August 7, 1927
Add to My HeroesRobert K. Webster
Operative Robert Webster, Coast Guardsman Sidney Sanderlin, and Coast Guardsman Victor Lamby, of the United States Coast Guard, were shot and killed by a suspect they had just arrested for rum running near the Bimini Islands. Operative Webster was en route to conduct a counterfeit investigation when he was killed.
The incident occurred after their Coast Guard Cutter CGC 249 stopped the suspect's boat. The killer, a 43-year-old gulf stream pirate, was called "King of the Rum Runners" during the prohibition era. He was sentenced to death and hung at the Coast Guard Station in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, on August 17, 1929. A man with him was sentenced to one year after he turned states evidence. This was the only execution ever carried out by the U.S. Coast Guard, the only execution ever carried out in a seaplane hangar, and the last legal hanging in Florida.
Operative Webster, a US WWI veteran, served with the United States Secret Service for seven years. He was survived by his wife and two young children and is buried at Arlington National Cemetary.
Bio
- Age Not available
- Tour 7 years
- Badge Not available
- Military Veteran
Incident Details
- Cause Gunfire
- Location Overseas
- Weapon Gun; Unknown type
- Offender Executed in 1929
Most Recent Reflection
View all 6 ReflectionsRest easy
Mark Mottola
August 7, 2020
Recent LODD Deaths
![Segus R. Jolivette](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27106/c_2024_jolivette.jpg)
Senior Corporal Segus R. Jolivette
Lafayette Police Department, LA
EOW: July 25, 2024
![Mohamed Said](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27101/police-officer-mohamed-said.jpg)
Corporal Mohamed Said
Melvindale Police Department, MI
EOW: July 21, 2024
![Edgar Ordonez](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27100/c_edgar-ordonez.jpg)
Probationary Police Officer Edgar Ordonez
New York City Police Department, NY
EOW: July 10, 2024
![Robert William Sumner](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27096/c_robert-sumner.png)
Corporal Robert William Sumner
Oklahoma Department of Corrections, OK
EOW: July 14, 2024
![Matthew Bowen](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27095/police-officer-matthew-bowen.jpg)
Police Officer Matthew Bowen
Vacaville Police Department, CA
EOW: July 11, 2024
Deputy Sheriff Fernando Esqueda
Harris County Sheriff's Office, TX
EOW: July 11, 2024
![Kevin Linn Palmer](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27091/c_k._palmer.jpg)
Assistant Chief Kevin Linn Palmer
North Richland Hills Police Department, TX
EOW: May 1, 2024
![Jamieson Ritter](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27085/police-officer-jamieson-ritter.jpg)
Police Officer Jamieson Ritter
Cleveland Division of Police, OH
EOW: July 4, 2024
![William Butler, Jr.](https://www.odmp.org/media/thumb/125/officer/27084/c_butler-bill.jpg)
Deputy Sheriff William Butler, Jr.
Hillsdale County Sheriff's Office, MI
EOW: June 27, 2024