19. Don’t Rob While Seeking an Amnesty For Robbery
Butch Cassidy tried to negotiate an amnesty plea with Wyoming’s governor, in which the Union Pacific Railroad would have dropped criminal charges. He blew up the negotiations by robbing another Union Pacific train in 1900, in breach of a promise made to the governor. Pressure mounted as posses tracked down and killed or arrested Wild Bunch members and associates, one after another.
In May 1900, Wild Bunch members rode into Moab, Utah, and killed the Sheriff and a deputy in retaliation for the killing of two gang members. In September 1900, Cassidy robbed a Nevada bank of $33,000, and in July, 1901, Wild Bunch members robbed a train in Montana, netting $60,000. Under mounting pressure, the gang broke up, and Cassidy fled to New York City in 1901 with Harry Alonzo Longabaugh, better known as the Sundance Kid. From NYC, they sailed to Argentina, where they bought a 15,000-acre ranch.