Wanted 50-08-11 06 The Case of Kenneth 'Two-gun' Wagner

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Wanted 50-08-11 06 The Case of Kenneth 'Two-gun' Wagner"

Release Date: June 26, 2025
Host: Harold's Old Time Radio
Episode Title: The Case of Kenneth 'Two-gun' Wagner

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Introduction

In this gripping episode of Harold's Old Time Radio, titled "The Case of Kenneth 'Two-gun' Wagner", host Walter McGraw takes listeners back to the tumultuous era of the Golden Age of Radio. This episode delves deep into the life and legend of Kenneth Wagner, a man whose story intertwines heroism, legend, and the relentless pursuit by law enforcement across the Tri-State area.

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Background of Kenneth Wagner

The narrative begins in the early spring of 1920, setting the stage in the tri-state region of North Carolina, Virginia, and Tennessee. Kenneth Wagner, affectionately known as "Big Boy" or "Spacho", emerges as a complex figure—both a legend and a convicted murderer.

• Family Insights:

  • Ollie Cunningham, Kenneth’s sister, provides a personal glimpse into his early life:
    “Kenny was a very honest, truthful kind of boy. He learned to shoot on the farm at home...”
    (02:33)

• Circus Life:

  • Wagner's journey takes him to the circus at Gate City at the age of 14, where he hones his skills as a bareback rider and a horseman.
    (02:55)

• Transition to Loosedale:

  • Seeking stardom, Wagner leaves the circus and moves to Loosedale, Mississippi, where he becomes involved in transporting moonshine, a risky venture that sets the stage for his infamous reputation.
    (03:39)

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The Manhunt Begins

Kenneth Wagner's downfall begins with a seemingly minor incident—a disputed theft of a wristwatch. This event spirals into a nationwide manhunt.

• The Arrest:

  • Wagner is apprehended while walking down railroad tracks, falsely accused of stealing a watch planted in his coat.
    (04:41)
  • Despite proclaiming his innocence, the case remains unresolved.
    (04:51)

• The Great Escape:

  • After a month in custody, Wagner ingeniously escapes by sawing his way out of prison, setting off a six-week period of freedom in his beloved hill country.
    (04:59)

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Escalation of Violence

Wagner's actions lead to multiple killings, further complicating his legend.

• First Killing:

  • On the night before his planned marriage (December 24, 1924), Wagner is involved in the killing of Deputy Sheriff Murdoch McIntosh.
    “Kenneth Wagner had walked out of that cabin with his arms raised...”
    (06:23)

• Subsequent Killings:

  • The manhunt intensifies, resulting in two more deaths as law enforcement scrambles to capture Wagner.
    (09:14)

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Trials and Imprisonment

Wagner faces legal battles across states, reflecting the complexities of jurisdiction and legal proceedings of the time.

• Mississippi Trial:

  • Initially convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death, Wagner's conviction is overturned, granting him a new trial.
    (14:08)

• Further Escapes:

  • Wagner escapes again, this time fleeing to Mexico and then returning to settle in Texarkana, where additional murders are attributed to him.
    (15:21)

• Final Capture:

  • Federal authorities join the hunt, leading to Wagner's eventual capture in Virginia. He waives his preliminary hearing, eager to share his side of the story.
    (20:24)

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Life in Prison and Subsequent Escape

Wagner's time in Mississippi State Prison at Parchman is marked by unexpected behavior and further escapes.

• Model Prisoner:

  • Despite his notorious reputation, Wagner becomes a trustee guard, training police dogs and aiding in prison security.
    (18:03)

• Escape in 1940:

  • Demonstrating his resourcefulness, Wagner escapes from Parchman by overpowering a guard and stealing his vehicle.
    (19:36)
  • Despite additional charges, Wagner remains elusive until his final capture.
    (20:24)

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Final Reflections and Legacy

The episode concludes with reflections from Wagner’s brother, Kelsey Wagner, highlighting the duality of Kenneth Wagner’s character—both a hardened criminal and a man seeking redemption.

• Kelsey's Perspective:

  • “Kenny feels that he has paid his debt to society with 21 years of his life... His main ambition is to help youngsters that might get on the wrong track...”
    (25:00)

• Ambiguous Justice:

  • The episode leaves listeners pondering the complexities of justice and the blurred lines between legend and reality.
    (27:02)

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Notable Quotes

• Ollie Cunningham (Kenneth’s sister):
  “Kenny was a very honest, truthful kind of boy. He learned to shoot on the farm at home...”
  (02:33)

• Kelsey Wagner (Brother of Kenneth):
  “Kenny feels that he has paid his debt to society with 21 years of his life. His main ambition and the rest of his life is to help youngsters that might get on the wrong track...”
  (25:00)

• Howard I. Bobbitt (FBI Agent):
  “Wagner was taken before a United States Commissioner. He waived preliminary hearing saying he didn't want to deal with small shots. He wanted to tell his story only to big shots.”
  (21:59)

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Conclusion

"The Case of Kenneth 'Two-gun' Wagner" offers a riveting exploration of a man whose life was marked by both legend and infamy. Through firsthand accounts, dramatic reenactments, and meticulous narration, Walter McGraw paints a comprehensive portrait of a complex individual whose story remains etched in the annals of American folklore. This episode not only entertains but also invites listeners to reflect on the nature of justice, redemption, and the enduring impact of legendary figures in our collective consciousness.

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For those who haven't tuned into this episode, "The Case of Kenneth 'Two-gun' Wagner" stands as a testament to the captivating storytelling of the Golden Age of Radio, bringing history to life through immersive narratives and compelling characters.

Transcript

[Walter McGraw]

WANTED WANTED FOR JAILBREAK Presented in the Public interest, the program that brings you for the first time on the air a nationwide manhunt in action. The actual facts to date on a man wanted from the record. Here, the on the spot reports of the people involved. Real names are used. Nothing is withheld. No one is protected. Here are the dramatic eyewitness accounts of a man wanted. Wanted for jailbreak. And now Wanted's on the spot. Investigator Walter McGraw.

[Narrator]

Good evening. Every week at this time I take you on a cross country search for a criminal who is at this very moment at large. The actual people who know him, his victims, his friends, his relatives and law enforcement officials who are involved will talk directly to you. They will tell you their own stories in their own way, giving you the facts as they know them. Remember, these eyewitnesses are putting themselves on the spot to give you first hand information about a man who is wanted. Tonight we turn Wanted spotlight to crime in the South. We're dealing with a case of Kenneth Wagner. A case in which there are many fabulous and unbelievable, contradictory and confusing factors. Wagner is a legend. He is also a convicted murderer accused of killing five men down Mississippi Way. The legend is that Kinney shoots a perfect circle around a man's heart and then puts the seventh bullet in the center of that circle. But this is just legend. To the people who know him well, Kenny Wagner is a hero and a martyr. A man unjustly hunted, A poet and a superman. A Jesse James of the Southern hills. Tonight we bring you as completely as we can, both sides of this story. Listen, these are the facts.

[Walter McGraw]

The date, early spring 1920. The location, the tri state area of North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee.

[Narrator]

The voices you hear next are the actual voices of the people who through no fault of their own, are involved in the case of Kenneth Wagner, called Big Boy or Spacho.

[Ollie Cunningham]

I'm Ollie Cunningham, Kenny Wagner's sister. Kenny was a very honest, truthful kind of boy. He learned to shoot on the farm at home. Most farm boys do learn to shoot early. I didn't get to know him too well because he ran away from home when he was 14 to join a circus at Gate City.

[Walter McGraw]

An itinerant circus, a carny and Big boy. Wagner started his career right then under the big top. He was a roustabout. He got the smell and feel of the sawdust. He took to the big ring, especially horses. He had learned about horses from his kinfolk and trained to be a bareback rider. A western hotshot mountain horseman. Trick stuff. Good stuff. New Stuff.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Kenny didn't learn to shoot no gun in the circus. Like some folks say, he always knew how to shoot. Down here, there's times you got no fresh meat and only one bullet. That's the way we live.

[Walter McGraw]

Kenneth Wagner headed for stardom. Decided to quit the circus and get another job. He moved to Loosedale, Mississippi.

[Kelsey Wagner]

I'm Ed Warley from Loosedale. Kenny Wagner, he had a job in a sawmill, but he was more interested in making a saw butt. His real occupation was transporting moonshine. He was a runner. He'd take that there moonshine, carry it.

[Jerry Nelson]

On horseback from Mobile county over in.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Mississippi and sell it all the time.

[Narrator]

The revenuers were happy they didn't catch him.

[Walter McGraw]

Big Boy Wagner was fast on a horse, faster than the revenue men. And he knew the back country of the Tri State region. He also knew the hills of Mississippi and he knew the people who lived back there.

[Kelsey Wagner]

About this time, Kenny fell in love. He was planning to get married. She was a mighty popular girl. Next beau of hers, a deputy sheriff's brother, was mighty jealous of Kenny. And the story is, don't know how true it is. Somebody planted a watch in his coat and said Kenny stole it.

[Narrator]

A stolen watch, a small, cheap wristwatch.

[Walter McGraw]

Wagner was walking down the railroad tracks on the outskirts of Loosedale when he was stopped by the local law and searched. The watch was found and Kenny Wagner was arrested and taken into custody.

[Narrator]

Wagner proclaimed his innocence, but the case of the stolen watch was never resolved.

[Walter McGraw]

Big Boy Wagner, after one month and a day of awaiting judgment, became proficient in another trade. According to official files, he borrowed a hacksaw from a fellow prisoner who just happened to have one, and and sawed his way to freedom. Six weeks of freedom in his beloved Hill Country. Then.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Wagner's hiding out in a cabin four miles out of McLean. If you want to get him, you gotta be careful.

[Narrator]

He's got a load of ammunition on him.

[Walter McGraw]

It was the night before Christmas, 1924, the night before Wagner was supposed to have been married.

[Kelsey Wagner]

My name's T.M. hempson and I'm past sheriff of George County, Mississippi. On December 24, 1924, at approximately 3:30 in the afternoon, Deputy Sheriff Murdoch McIntosh came to me and asked me to accompany him and Sheriff Jonathan Turner to McLean, where they were going after Kenny Wagner. I told Deputy McIntosh that I would accompany them. This is Larry Cooley, the night marshal of Leeksville. Jonathan Turner led a bunch of men over to McClain to capture Kenny Wagner, where he was camping out in an old house. They called him out and Kenny started out without his gun. McIntyre shot him and the Wagner stepped back and got his gun and Petty killed him, then run out over him, made him get away.

[Walter McGraw]

Kenneth Wagner had walked out of that cabin with his arms raised and Deputy Murdoch McIntosh had opened fire on the helpless Wagner. Helpless until the wounded Kinney returned to the cabin, got his gun and shot.

[Narrator]

Back, killing number one.

[Walter McGraw]

Mississippi's wires sang out the story of the murder of McIntosh. It became known there was a reward of $1,000 on Kinney's head. $1,000 brought out the huntsman in men who never thought of hunting before.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Sure, half the county was hoping to collect that reward money.

[Walter McGraw]

The hunters didn't have to wait long for information. There are two stories about what happened next. One is that a woman reported that a group of young people were misbehaving on the banks of the Holston river and that five men with 10 guns went down to investigate. The other story is that someone tipped off the law who saw opportunity, opportunity for ambush. At any rate, five heavily armed men from the sheriff's office started for Lin's Ford. But Wagner had friends.

[Jerry Nelson]

This is Jerry Nelson of Nelson Town, Kingsport, Tennessee. I was out riding one day down the river and just happened to see some boys and girls sitting up on the riverbank. And I saw the law coming, which I thought it was my duty to warn them to get away. And so I told them they better skedaddle. And so they did get up or started up through the field. Pretty soon the law was pretty closed, so I had to make some little excuse for myself. So I just waited till the log got up even with me. And then I asked them could I ford the river? And they said I could. So I rode on out into the water about 50 or 60ft, and I heard some shooting. So I heard a bullet ziz I felt sure if I should get shot, even if I wouldn't be killed, I'd drown if I'd get shot and wounded and fall in the water. So I turned the horse and rode back out again and rode a little ways up the road and I heard a girl holler and say, lord have mercy, somebody's killed, because I saw him fall. So they started on towards me and I started riding on back up the road. I saw Kenny coming across the field towards the road where I was at. So we all met, even the girls and myself and the other boy and Wagner all met. And Wagner walked up to me and I was still on the horse and put his gun in my ribs and said, get off that horse. So I got off the horse and he asked me to tighten the girt and I told him to tighten it itself, which he did tighten it and got on the horse. Well, he told the girl, said don't worry about me, said this law won't get me. And then he turned to me and said, you can follow me and get your horse or I'll send him back. And away he rode. I just soon not follow him.

[Narrator]

Killings number two and three.

[Walter McGraw]

Kenny got away, but Sheriff Webb and policeman SM killed the victims of his deadly aim. Now the Tri state area organized a posse to hunt the three time killer.

[Narrator]

100 men on horseback, armed and angry went out.

[Kelsey Wagner]

I am J.D. newland, President Sheriff of Sullivan County. After Kenny Wagner escaped this ambush at Kingsport, a posse of a hundred men or more was sent out in search for him. They searched all night and by the time daylight arrived he'd been out so far in front that the officers lost all track of him.

[Walter McGraw]

The posse lost Wagner, but they found his horse near Cloud Ford. As for Wagner, Kinney had swum across the Holston river to safety despite a bullet wound.

[Ollie Cunningham]

Then my name is Maryville Rose Waycross, Virginia. We heard someone knocking on the window. And then he called and mounted in and my mother, who was in an upper bedroom, came out on the front porch. So he talked to her. He told her all about what he had done. Said he had shot two men and maybe three in the one run and said I wouldn't shoot a man in the back. And he asked her to let him in. And he asked if her husband was home. She told him, no, there isn't a man person on the place, not a one, just myself and the children. And so he says, oh, I see, then why you won't let me in. He said he had never done a woman harm in his life. Never had. Finally he. He left and went to our barn. And so the next morning she went to the barn and walked up on the hay. And then as she started walking down off of the hay, she said he crawled out of from under the hay and talked to her. And she told him that he ought to give up, that he might be in danger. Then he wrote a note to his sister telling her that he was given up and that it would be all right, that she could go on with her school. So she came back to the house and fixed his breakfast and took it back to him and talked to him a while. And she came back to the house again and directly Kenny came out of the barn and gave up to Mr. Poe, who was a merchant in the store building near our home.

[Kelsey Wagner]

I'm Dr. Poe, operator, store at Waycross. I heard someone at the back of the store hollering. I recognized him as Kenny Wagner from the description I'd had of him. The rest of the men didn't want to have anything to do with it. So I told them I hadn't done anything to him and I didn't think he'd harm me. So I went out and asked him what he wanted. Said he wanted to give up and he wanted me to collect a thousand dollars award. Wanted me to know if I'd agreed to collect that and give his sister half of it, finish her education. So I made a note to that effect. Then Mr. Bustle come along and we decided that rather than take him in my car myself, we'd put him in between us in the Ford Roadster. So we just loaded him up in Roadster and started into Gate City.

[Walter McGraw]

Wagner, convinced now that he had done the right thing, was docile and sat between his self appointed captors, CR Poe and Neil Bussel. At sunbreak, this strange trio drove along the thin gutted dirt roads for the sheriff's office in Gate City, Virginia.

[Narrator]

Meanwhile, the law was still looking for him.

[Kelsey Wagner]

My name is Reuben Foley, Deputy Sheriff of Sullivan, Kansas. We spotted Kenny Wagner, which we was hunting for, and I was going west and he was coming east and two other fellows was with him. Mr. Bustle and Pole recognized and I said to the man sitting by me there, come Wagner, look out. And I tried to hit his left front wheel but I missed it and hit the running boy right side of it. And I turned his car over. Well, Wagner direct him. Just raised his hand so high, took.38 special off of him. Kenny acted just as nice as he could be with us. He never caused us a bit of trouble, never even handcuffed him. We brought him back to Kingsport jail.

[Walter McGraw]

Now Mississippi was faced with the prospect of paying that thousand dollar reward. Suddenly she found herself unable to pay off. Besides, Mississippi wanted Wagner for the murder of McIntosh and since Tennessee had him already, she sulked. Tennessee, on the other hand, was in a hurry. The case was rushed to court and in less than 10 days Wagner went to trial in Bluntsville for the murder of policeman Smith.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Phelan was high in town, I can tell you, on both sides there was talk of lynch and Wagner, but then lots of other folks sympathize with Kenny. They chipped in their dimes and nickels and quarters to help them buy legal counsel.

[Walter McGraw]

Six Lawyers rejected the money and volunteered their services for Wagner. As for the prosecution.

[Kelsey Wagner]

I am T.R. bandy, at present county judge of Sullivan County, Tennessee. I was city attorney and assisted in the prosecution of Kenny Wagner for the murder of John Smith. And as a result of the trial, which lasted several days, the jury found Wagner guilty of first degree murder and sentenced him to death in the electric chair. A motion was made by his attorneys to set aside the verdict and grant him a new trial on the ground that the court had committed error in his charge to the jury. After due consideration, the trial judge granted the motion and allowed the defendant a new trial.

[Walter McGraw]

Big Boy was placed in the county jail while his attorneys went to work collecting evidence for his new trial. But once again, Wagner's reluctance to remain behind prison bars made itself known.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Kenneth Widener and bert Davenport and four.

[Narrator]

Other prisoners broke out of jail at 6pm this evening. They are wanted by this department for jailbreak.

[Walter McGraw]

Wagner was loose again. This time he headed for Mexico. And taking no chance on immigration authorities at the border, Big Boy Wagner dove into the Rio Grande and swam across the river to the state of Chihuahua. Wagner hoped to settle down in Juarez. But a strange situation between Mexico and the United States turned Mexican attention on Kinney. They thought he was a spy in danger of his life. Kenny foreswore the pleasures of bullfights and banditos and headed back across the Rio Grande to settle in the little town of Texarkana. Wagner worked in a sawmill there. At first he got along just fine. Then he got himself into trouble. And according to our reconstruction, from the.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Many legends, that was over a girl. Nice girl. Nice girl in dance hall. Seems that Kenny said something that her brothers didn't like. Well, the brothers didn't know about Kenny's reputation. They had a fight with him in the dance hall. Then they followed him out and ambushed him. There's a law that says you got no right to kill, but there's no law that says you gotta stand still and be killed.

[Narrator]

Killings number four and five.

[Walter McGraw]

Two more murders laid to Kinney. Now Wagner, of his own free will, walked into the sheriff's office in Texarkana and gave himself up. He gave himself up to a woman sheriff named Lil BARKER, Now Walter McGraw.

[Narrator]

Much of the Texarkana story is lost in legend and dimmed by time. But one fact is clear. No charges were preferred against Kinney for the killing of the Carver brothers. Instead, Sheriff Lil Barker turned him over to Mississippi, who wanted him for the murder of Deputy Sheriff Mert McIntosh.

[Walter McGraw]

Again, Wagner went on trial for murder. Disgusted with the way his trial was handled in Tennessee, he handed his own defense in Mississippi and once again he pleaded self defense.

[Narrator]

The jury brought in a verdict of guilty and Wagner's sentence was fixed at life imprisonment at the Mississippi State Prison at Parchment. With Wagner in jail in Mississippi, Tennessee entered a retaining order at the penitentiary. This order demanded that should Wagner be paroled, he must be returned to Tennessee to face a retrial and if found guilty a second time, he was to face the electric chair.

[Walter McGraw]

Wagner wasn't happy with the order of retention. He wasn't particularly anxious for parole. He only wanted a happy life in the penitentiary. He became a trustee guard. Parchman presented him with two police dogs which he trained for prison duty.

[Tommy Martin]

My name is Tommy Martin. I worked for the Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol. I first met Kenny at Parchman where he was instrumental in bringing three or four prisoners back who had escaped from Parchment. He aided us with the dogs. He was mighty good and he also was a good shot with a rifle. One particular time I picked him up and proceeded to Brookhaven with him and the dogs where safecracker shot two city policemen. We got to Brookhaven, we was unable to pick up too much trail with the dogs, but we tried. We stayed there for three days and on the way back home we stopped side the road to let the dogs get out and walk around for exercise. And he was showing me how he could shoot by taking the rifle to his hip and shooting fence posters with it. And I also had an extra box of cottages in the car and he asked me could he have them. And I gave them to him because it wasn't any use keeping them from having them because he toted the Thompson sub at Parchman as a guard for.

[Walter McGraw]

Six years, Wagner's record was so good there was talk of parole. But the dog trainer of Parchman didn't like his too good record.

[Kelsey Wagner]

I'm Al Holman, radio newsman for WALA in Mobile. Here's an item that came over our state wire on the night of October 27, 1940 and was broadcast over our facilities to audiences in the Deep South. Date Line Parchman, Mississippi. Kenny Wagner, at one time known as the South's number one public enemy, has.

[Walter McGraw]

Just escaped from Mississippi State Reformatory at Parchment.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Wagner was being used to track down an escaped prisoner in his capacity as keeper of the bloodhounds. When he escaped, he turned the gun which he was using in the hunt on prison guard Ben Fowler and forced Fowler to drive him to a nearby town. Wagner not only stole his clothes but also his guns. It is reported that by the time the guard returned to Parchment to bring news of the escape to prison authorities, the trail was too cold for even Kenny Wagner's dogs to do much good.

[Walter McGraw]

Kenny Wagner was loose again. Now four more charges were added to his record. The state wanted him for jailbreak, the federal government for kidnapping, unlawful flight and for failure to register for the draft. The FBI joined in the manhunt and results were fast in coming.

[Howard I. Bobbitt]

This is Howard I. Bobbitt, formerly special agent in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation at Richmond, Virginia. The officers of the Virginia State Police and agents of the FBI received information to the effect that Kenneth Wagner was to be at a residence a short distance from Gate City. Surveillance maintained upon the residents showed Wagner getting into a car with another individual, driving and proceeding to Gate City. The Virginia State Police and the agents followed Wagner into Gate City and through Gate City for a distance of about 7 miles. They arrived at a place in the road where it would be possible to apprehend Wagner without him escaping. The siren was blown upon the police car and the driver of the car pulled over. Wagner was commanded to get out of the car. Wagner got out, raised his hand, stood for an instant and then dove back into the car to obtain a sawed off shotgun. Shots were fired at him by the officers. He straightened up and dove into a shallow ditch alongside the car. He was given the command to come out of the ditch within 30 seconds. He complied with the officer's orders and walking back into the headlights. Upon the officer's orders, he was commanded to take off his jacket. He did this. He was carrying two 38s on a gun belt. He was commanded to drop these guns. He did that. He also took off his shirt. Upon orders of the officers and in further compliance to show that he had no further guns upon him, took off his trousers and dropped them to the road. About 1am in the moonlight.

[Walter McGraw]

Wagner was taken before a United States Commissioner. He waived preliminary hearing saying he didn't want to deal with small shots. He wanted to tell his story only to big shots. And he did.

[Narrator]

All three federal indictments were dismissed and.

[Walter McGraw]

Wagner was returned to the state penitentiary at Parchman, Mississippi. All possibility of parole was dismissed now and Kenny was happy. Once again, Kenny Wagner proved himself and became Parchman's mother. Part prisoner, part guard. He was such an excellent prisoner that he was rewarded.

[Narrator]

Kenneth Widen, along with a group of other deserving convicts, was given a 10 day Christmas furlough home to see his kin and celebrate the holidays. And like a model prisoner, he returned to Parchment when his furlough was over. But not for long.

[Walter McGraw]

Once again, the hillbilly superman saw in the not too distant future another chance of parole. Once again, he was mindful of Tennessee's electric chair.

[Tommy Martin]

I'm Officer Tommy Martin with the Mississippi highway safety patrol. On March 15, 1948, I was on patrol duty around Loosedale where I received an item over my car radio that Kenny Wagner had walked off in the state farm with a Thompson submachine gun and a.22 pistol which he carried as a trusty guard up there. And he had forced some people to carry him from Parchment through Greenwood, Mississippi. We was ordered to be on the alert.

[Walter McGraw]

They watched. But from March 15, 1948 until the present time, Big Boy Wagner, the Tri State problem boy, has remained at large. It is not our function here to determine the guilt or innocence of a man, nor do we intend to. But according to the facts you've heard tonight and or other pertinent material, Kenneth Wagner is wanted. Here again is Walter McGraw.

[Narrator]

In this case, you must be informed of all the facts. What does Wagner look like? How does he dress? What are his habits? These we will give you, so stand by. How can you recognize him? Listen, and listen carefully. The following is a description of William Kenneth Wagner. Age 47. Height 6ft 2 inches. Weight 235 pounds. Eyes brown. Hair dark brown. Graying. Bald on top. Marks of identification. Cut scar under chin. Another on the upper front part of the right ear. Bullet scar on left hip and thigh. Irregular cut scar on ball of each thumb.

[Walter McGraw]

And now Back to Walter McGraw in New York.

[Narrator]

There is one more voice to add to the sum total you've heard tonight. And who knows K. Wagner better than anyone else?

[Kelsey Wagner]

I am Kelsey Wagner, brother of Kenny. I'm making a statement on behalf of Kenny as to why he wants to give himself up to be a free man. And he says it at some of our greatest apparent impostors with former sinners. And if there's no forgiveness, what's the use to repent? Kenny feels that he has paid his debt to society with 21 years of his life. His main ambition and the rest of his life is to help youngsters that might get on the wrong track or maybe take to using guns. And why he wants to give himself up. He wants to be a free man. He wants to make amends for the wrongs he's done. And to make these amends, he'd have to have a guarantee of charges dropped in Tennessee and a pardon from Mississippi which had been offered years ago. An Assurance that he can give himself up without a possibility of gunplay or getting shot in the back. And being his brother, I know him like no one else do.

[Narrator]

Tonight you've heard many confusing, contradictory reports on Kenny Wagner. The question of whether or not Kenneth Wagner has been unjustly sentenced is not our problem. Wagner is a putative. But the fact remains that Mississippi has offered to parole him several times. In Tennessee, I've talked to many law enforcement officials and many of these men gave me the impression of a closed eye policy. On Wegner, for instance, I talked to Judge bandy of Kingsport, Tennessee, and he.

[Kelsey Wagner]

Said, Mr. McGraw, you have asked me why Tennessee is not interested in prosecuting Kenny Wagner on these charges. The reason is that the eyewitnesses and all material witnesses to the tragedy are now dead. If we undertook to try him, we wouldn't have any evidence that would justify the case being submitted to the jury. Consequently, it would be wasted time and effort under existing conditions.

[Narrator]

So here is the situation. We have a wanted man who isn't wanted. This doesn't make sense. If Wagner is wanted, let's have the police go after him, which they are not doing. But if he is not wanted, let's clean this up legally. Free Wagner or bring him back to Dan jail. And if Wagner will help himself and surrender, I'm sure justice will be done and this incredible situation will be cleaned up. Now, this is Walter McGraw saying there's no time like now to wipe out crime.

[Walter McGraw]

Be with us next week when you will hear the actual people involved give their eyewitness account of the cop killer of the west who is wanted. Wanted for armed robbery. All material heard on tonight's program was factual from the record. Real names were used.

[Narrator]

No one was protected.

[Walter McGraw]

Tonight's report was written by P.L. mayer, music by Morris Momorski. The narrator was Fred Collins. Wanted was supervised for NBC by James Kovac and was produced and Directed by Walter McGraw. Here Bill Stern, sports newsreel, next on NBC.