Historica Wiki
Advertisement
Jem Coughlin

James "Jem" Coughlin (1971-2010) was a Boston bank robber.

Biography[]

James Coughlin was born in Charlestown, Boston, Massachusetts in 1971, and he came from a working-class Irish family. He befriended his neighbor Doug MacRay as a child, and Coughlin's family took MacRay in after his mother committed suicide and his father went to prison. Coughlin's own mother died of HIV, while his father was murdered in prison. During his teens, Coughlin was sentenced to nine years in prison for shooting and killing another teenager (Brendan Lee) who wanted to kill MacRay, and, upon his release, he joined MacRay and their other friends Albert MacGloan and Desmond Elden in becoming involved with Fergus Colm's Irish Mob organization. The crew took part in two bank robberies and six armored car robberies, giving a cut to Colm each time; Coughlin was known for his excessive use of violence during the robberies. In 2010, they embarked on their largest robbery, the 2010 Fenway Park heist. The heist turned into a police shootout in the parking garage and on the street, and Coughlin was wounded and left without ammunition. Rather than go back to prison, he came into the crossfire with his unloaded guns and committed suicide by cop, being shot dead.


Gallery[]

Advertisement