A History Channel documentary aired in 2015 brought to light new evidence that seemed to support the Angling brothers having survived the escape. A signed Christmas card was sent to their family, and handwriting analysis was a match for the brothers. Unfortunately, no one could determine the date of delivery.
The Anglin family brought to light another key piece of evidence, a picture of the two brothers in Brazil shot in 1975. This picture was analyzed by a forensic expert who stated that it was “more than likely” John and Clarence Anglin. To this day, no one is 100% sure that these allegations have any truth behind them.
Case Closed?
On December 31, 1997, 17 years after the escape, the FBI investigation was finally dropped. They concluded that the prisoners probably drowned in the San Francisco Bay as the bodies never being found. The US Marshals, however, have kept their investigation ongoing.
The Deputy US Marshal said to NPR in an interview in 2009: “There’s an active warrant, and the Marshals Service doesn’t give up looking for people.” In fact, that was not the last that was heard about the three people who allegedly escaped from Alcatraz. This story has no ending as it seems, and the mystery will forever live.
Following the Currents
About a month after the escape, a body was spotted about 17 miles from the Golden Gate Bridge by a Norwegian cargo ship. According to them, the body was in clothes similar to the Alcatraz prison uniforms. However, it took a while for the report to be filed, and the body was never recovered.
In 2014, a group of researchers used a computer model to calculate the currents flowing on the night of the escape. According to their findings, if the gang headed out around midnight, the water currents would actually assist them on their way to shore, and they had a good chance of survival.
Deathbed Confession
Another piece of the puzzle was supplied by Robert Anglin, one of the Anglin siblings, who confessed on his deathbed that he had been in touch with John and Clarence from 1963 through 1987 but claimed that they later lost touch. The Anglin family did not seek out their long-lost brothers in Brazil because the escape from “The Rock” is still an open Interpol investigation.
If they were to locate and inadvertently lead police to their siblings, they would face severe repercussions. The question of why the police didn't harshly investigate the Anglin family members remains unknown. Maybe the police knew more than we think?
The Letter
The famous great escape of Alcatraz made new headlines in January 2018 when the FBI shockingly announced that they were reopening the case. The decades-old cold case was suddenly brought back to life by intriguing new evidence.
The new evidence was a letter sent to the San Francisco Police Department in 2013 signed by a man claiming to be John Anglin, one of the Alcatraz escapees. It is unclear why the letter didn’t come to light for five years, but its contents were both intriguing and shocking. Was this a key point in the new and modern investigation of the case?