Detective Robert M. Endler

Robert M. Endler

Detective Robert Endler and Detective Sergeant Charles Monaghan were shot and killed while attempting to arrest a forgery suspect.

Another officer was tasked to go next door to the Sears Department Store and pick up the suspect. He asked the detectives to help him. The suspect had not been searched or handcuffed by the store security personnel. As the three officers approached, he called out, Oh, here they are, are you the police? Someone replied they were, and he drew a revolver and fired five rounds at the trio of officers, killing Detectives Endler and Monaghan. The other officer was wounded but returned fire.

The suspect escaped the police dragnet that night but was captured later. He then escaped from prison and fled to Mexico. He was later returned to the U.S. and was sentenced to prison, where he eventually died in 1996.

Detective Endler was a U.S Navy veteran of WWII and served with the Los Angeles Police Department for less than 15 years. He was survived by his wife, daughter, and son.