Episode 150: Bill Plunkett – 1929, Suicide or Murder? The G-Men and the Nurse

Retired agent William “Bill” Plunkett served in the FBI for 27 years. During his FBI career, he was assigned to the joint Counterintelligence operations with the Central Intelligence Agency and investigated National Security and Cybercrime matters. In this episode of FBI Retired Case File Review, Bill Plunkett reviews the 1929 Bureau of Investigation case featuring the mysterious death of Virginia McPherson; attractive young nurse found semi-nude in her apartment with a pajama cord around her neck. The case was initially investigated by the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police, but after a public outcry when Virginia’s death was ruled a suicide, Director Hoover’s  G-Men were asked to step in and re-do the investigation.

During his FBI career, Bill worked in the Albany Division, the Cincinnati Division, and the Washington Field Office in D.C. He was an original member of the Cincinnati FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force, formed after 9/11. He is the author of two true crime books that take place in the early days of the FBI, known initially as the Bureau of Investigations. In The G-Men and the Nurse, his second book, Bill recounts the story of the Virginia McPherson case. His first book was titled The G-Man and the Diamond King.

Supervisory Special Agent (Retired)

Bill Plunkett

1982 – 2009

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“The Bureau of Investigation, precursor for the FBI, was brought in to take a second look at the case which was already weeks old and the crime scene had been dismantled.”

Here are links to a newspaper articles from 1929 documenting the public’s curiosity about the death of Virginia McPherson:

New York Daily News 12/8/1929: What Has Happened to Justice -Page 1

New York Daily News 12/8/1929: What Has Happened to Justice -Page 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bill Plunkett, FBI agent-turned-crime writer, has applied his former investigation skills to Virginia McPherson’s mysterious death. The book can be purchased here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jerri Williams

View posts by Jerri Williams
Jerri Williams, a retired FBI agent, author and podcaster, jokes that she writes about the FBI to relive her glory days. After 26 years with the Bureau specializing in major economic fraud and corruption investigations, she calls on her professional encounters with scams and schemers to write police procedurals inspired by true crime FBI cases in her Philadelphia FBI Corruption Squad crime fiction series featuring flawed female FBI agent Kari Wheeler. Jerri’s FBI for Armchair Detectives nonfiction series enables readers to discover who the FBI is and what the FBI does by debunking misconceptions about the FBI in books, TV, and movies. Her books are available as ebooks, paperbacks, and audiobooks wherever books are sold. She’s also the host of FBI Retired Case File Review, a true crime podcast with more than 300 episodes available on all popular podcast apps and YouTube.

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