In the quiet town of Abingdon, Virginia, a routine attempt to question two individuals ended in a hail of gunfire that tragically cut short the life of Special Agent Hubert J. Treacy, Jr. on March 13, 1942. At 29 years old, the male FBI agent, who had been with the bureau for just eleven months, was fatally shot by two Army deserters.
The day unfolded as Special Agent Treacy and his partner, Special Agent Charles L. Tignor, approached the two soldiers inside a local restaurant.
The men, who had deserted their post at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia, were sought for questioning. Without warning, the deserters drew handguns and opened fire. Special Agent Treacy was killed almost instantly, while his partner was severely wounded in the sudden and violent exchange.
The two assailants, identified as 21-year-old Charles J. Lovett and 22-year-old James Edward Testerman, fled the scene but were apprehended by FBI agents and local law enforcement just a few hours later. Both men were subsequently convicted of first-degree murder for the death of Special Agent Treacy. Their sentence was life imprisonment, which they were to serve at the notorious Alcatraz Prison. One of the convicted men died in federal prison on April 28, 1986.
