The unsolved mystery of June 1962 Alcatraz Escape

The June 1962 Alcatraz escape was a prison break from Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, a maximum-security facility located on an island in San Francisco Bay, undertaken by inmates Frank Morris and brothers John and Clarence Anglin. The three men were able to escape from their cells and it is said that they leave the island in a makeshift raft. However, they have never been seen again to date.

Alcatrez escape
Frank Morris, Clarence Anglin and John Anglin

June 1962 Alcatraz Escape:

Late on the night of June 11 or early morning of June 12, 1962, the guards of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary in San Francisco checked into the cells of three inmates named Frank Morris, Clarence Anglin and John Anglin and everything seemed fine.

But soon afterwards, the guards had realized that it wasn’t the inmates who were in the beds, rather than three dummies merely constructed from soap and toilet paper.

The unsolved mystery of June 1962 Alcatraz Escape 1
June 1962 Alcatraz Escape

To this day, these three prisoners have never been found again, their bodies weren’t discovered anywhere — a disappearance that is one of the country’s most notorious unsolved mysteries.

What Happened To Them?

Did these three infamous Alcatraz prisoners survive their brazen attempt, escaping the world’s most impenetrable island prison? And if so, what happened to them? Are they still alive, nearly six decades later?

The unsolved mystery of June 1962 Alcatraz Escape 2
The Alcatraz Prison

A theory was officially prevailed that Morris and the Anglin brothers drowned after leaving Alcatraz Island and attempting to cross the frigid San Francisco Bay. It was further reported that the mother of Anglin brothers received flowers anonymously on every Mother’s Day until she died, and two very tall unknown women were reported to have attended her funeral.

A Strange New Claim:

But in a newly surfaced letter sent to San Francisco police in 2013 and obtained by CBS affiliate KPIX, a man claiming himself John Anglin, one of the escapees, stated that all three of them survived the attempt — but that he was the only one still living.

“My name is John Anglin,” the handwritten letter began. “I escape [sic] from Alcatraz in June 1962 with my brother Clarence and Frank Morris. I’m 83 years old and in bad shape. I have cancer. Yes, we all made it that night but barely!” According to his claim in the letter, Frank Morris died in 2008 and Clarence Anglin died in 2011.