FBI re-creates decoy heads Alcatraz inmates used in escape

Half a century after a notorious prison escape from Alcatraz Island, the FBI has created replicas of decoy heads that inmates used to distract guards from a plan that still captivates researchers and tourists.

Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D-printed copies of the decoys that inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin constructed with soap, plaster and human hair.

Morris and the Anglin brothers placed the decoys in their beds and climbed through a wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found.

A newly 3D printed decoy head used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape in 1962, is on display during a news conference at Alcatraz Island Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, in San Francisco. The FBI has created replicas of decoy heads used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape from Alcatraz. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D printed replicas of the decoys that inmates had constructed with soap, plaster and human hair to distract guards from their plan. Authorities say inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin placed the decoys in their beds before climbing through the wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found. (AP PhotoEric Risberg)

Inmate Clayton West also created a head but never made it out of the maximum-security prison that housed dangerous criminals like Al Capone and offenders with a history of escaping.

Authorities said they made the replicas to share with the public because the original decoys are fragile and are evidence in the still-open investigation into the escape by the U.S. Marshals Service.

"We understand the original items can't be out here — they've got to be archived," said John F. Bennett, FBI special agent in charge in San Francisco. "But we recognize that those items are also part of the rich and historic fabric and the landmark of this city."

Through this hole cut into the back of a prison cell is the way one of three prisoners mounted a famous 1962 escape, on Alcatraz Island Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, in San Francisco. The FBI has created replicas of decoy heads used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape from Alcatraz Island in 1962. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D printed replicas of the decoys that inmates had constructed with soap, plaster and human hair to distract guards from their plan. Authorities say inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin placed the decoys in their beds before climbing through the wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found. (AP PhotoEric Risberg)

Bennett said a team from the FBI's laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, traveled to San Francisco to scan the original decoys. Employees at the lab donated their own hair to accurately re-create the original masks, which included human hair that the inmates had collected from the prison barber shop.

"The hair and the paint on here is exactly what the prisoners did," Bennett said, showing the replicas brought to the island in black, waterproof cases.

The FBI investigated the prison break — which was featured in the 1979 movie "Escape from Alcatraz" starring Clint Eastwood — for 17 years before it was turned over to the Marshals Service.

A newly 3D printed decoy head used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape in 1962, is on display as FBI agents looks on before the start of a news conference at Alcatraz Island Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, in San Francisco. The FBI has created replicas of decoy heads used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape from Alcatraz. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D printed replicas of the decoys that inmates had constructed with soap, plaster and human hair to distract guards from their plan. Authorities say inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin placed the decoys in their beds before climbing through the wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found. (AP PhotoEric Risberg)

Now, Alcatraz visitors can see models of the heads on display that were used in the movie. The FBI hopes the public will soon be able to view the agency's replicas, which were unveiled to some media outlets along with "Wanted" signs for the long-escaped inmates.

Authorities are investigating any and all credible leads, said Don O'Keefe, U.S. marshal for the Northern District of California.

"Some may believe that we're chasing shadows, but our efforts are meant not just to perform due diligence, but to be a warning to other fugitives, that U.S. Marshals don't give up because of the passing of time," he said in a statement.

FBI Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett examines a newly 3D printed decoy head used in a famous 1962 prison escape during a news conference on Alcatraz Island Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, in San Francisco. The FBI has created replicas of decoy heads used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape from Alcatraz Island in 1962. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D printed replicas of the decoys that inmates had constructed with soap, plaster and human hair to distract guards from their plan. Authorities say inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin placed the decoys in their beds before climbing through the wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found. (AP PhotoEric Risberg)

Shown is the area that prisoners climbed behind their cells to reach a rooftop and mount their famous 1962 escape from Alcatraz Island Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, in San Francisco. The FBI has created replicas of decoy heads used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape from Alcatraz. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D printed replicas of the decoys that inmates had constructed with soap, plaster and human hair to distract guards from their plan. Authorities say inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin placed the decoys in their beds before climbing through the wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found. (AP PhotoEric Risberg)

FBI agents carry waterproof cases containing newly 3d printed decoy heads, used to mount a famous prison escape in 1962, to a news conference on Alcatraz Island Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, in San Francisco. The FBI has created replicas of decoy heads used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape from Alcatraz. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D printed replicas of the decoys that inmates had constructed with soap, plaster and human hair to distract guards from their plan. Authorities say inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin placed the decoys in their beds before climbing through the wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found. (AP PhotoEric Risberg)

FBI Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett speaks about the unveiling of new 3D printed decoy heads used in a famous 1962 prison escape during a news conference on Alcatraz Island Thursday, Nov. 15, 2018, in San Francisco. The FBI has created replicas of decoy heads used by prisoners to mount their infamous escape from Alcatraz Island in 1962. Authorities on Thursday unveiled 3D printed replicas of the decoys that inmates had constructed with soap, plaster and human hair to distract guards from their plan. Authorities say inmates Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin placed the decoys in their beds before climbing through the wall to escape the island prison in San Francisco Bay. The men were never found. (AP PhotoEric Risberg)

President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to justify deploying troops as protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement persist in Minneapolis.

Trump made the threat to “quickly put an end to the travesty” after a federal officer shot a man in the leg while being attacked with a shovel and broom handle on Wednesday. The incident further heightened the sense of fear and anger radiating across the city a week after an immigration agent fatally shot a woman in the head.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to invoke the rarely used federal law to deploy the U.S. military or federalize the National Guard for domestic law enforcement, over the objections of state governors.

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In a statement describing the events that led to Wednesday’s shooting, Homeland Security said federal law enforcement officers stopped a person from Venezuela who was in the U.S. illegally. The person drove away and crashed into a parked car before taking off on foot, DHS said.

After officers reached the person, two other people arrived from a nearby apartment and all three started attacking the officer, according to DHS.

“Fearing for his life and safety as he was being ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot to defend his life,” DHS said.

The two people who came out of the apartment are in custody, it said.

Police Chief Brian O’Hara’s account of what happened largely echoed that of Homeland Security. O’Hara said the man shot was in the hospital with a non-life-threatening injury.

Jacob Frey spoke Wednesday night after federal officers wearing gas masks and helmets fired tear gas into a small crowd while protesters threw rocks and shot fireworks.

“This is an impossible situation that our city is presently being put in and at the same time we are trying to find a way forward to keep people safe, to protect our neighbors, to maintain order,” he said.

Frey described a federal force that is five times as big as the city’s 600-officer police force and has “invaded” the city, scaring and angering residents, some of whom want the officers to “fight ICE agents.”

The Department of Homeland Security says it has made more than 2,000 arrests in the state since early December and is vowing to not back down.

Trump made the threat Thursday after a federal officer trying to make an arrest shot a man in the leg Wednesday after being attacked with a shovel and broom handle. The incident further heightened the sense of fear and anger radiating across the city a week after an immigration agent fatally shot a woman in the head.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to invoke the rarely used federal law to deploy the U.S. military or federalize the National Guard for domestic law enforcement, over the objections of state governors.

“If the corrupt politicians of Minnesota don’t obey the law and stop the professional agitators and insurrectionists from attacking the Patriots of I.C.E., who are only trying to do their job, I will institute the INSURRECTION ACT, which many Presidents have done before me, and quickly put an end to the travesty that is taking place in that once great State,” Trump said in social media post.

▶ Read more about Trump’s latest threats to Minnesota

An AP-NORC poll from January found that about 4 in 10 U.S. adults approve of Trump’s performance as president. That’s virtually unchanged from March 2025, shortly after he took office for the second time.

The new poll also shows subtle signs of vulnerability for Trump, mainly regarding the economy and immigration.

Two senators from opposite parties are joining forces in a renewed push to ban members of Congress from trading stocks, an effort that has broad public support but has repeatedly stalled on Capitol Hill.

Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Republican Sen. Ashley Moody of Florida on Thursday plan to introduce legislation, first shared with The Associated Press, that would bar lawmakers and their immediate family members from trading or owning individual stocks.

It’s the latest in a flurry of proposals in the House and the Senate to limit stock trading in Congress, lending bipartisan momentum to the issue. But the sheer number of proposals has clouded the path forward. Republican leaders in the House are pushing their own bill on stock ownership, an alternative that critics have dismissed as watered down.

▶ Read more about the cross-party effort

Senate Republicans voted to dismiss a war powers resolution Wednesday that would have limited Trump’s ability to conduct further attacks on Venezuela after two GOP senators reversed course on supporting the legislation.

Trump put intense pressure on five Republican senators who joined with Democrats to advance the resolution last week and ultimately prevailed in heading off passage of the legislation. Two of the Republicans — Sens. Josh Hawley of Missouri and Todd Young of Indiana — flipped under the pressure.

Vice President JD Vance had to break the 50-50 deadlock in the Senate on a Republican motion to dismiss the bill.

The outcome of the high-profile vote demonstrated how Trump still has command over much of the Republican conference, yet the razor-thin vote tally also showed the growing concern on Capitol Hill over the president’s aggressive foreign policy ambitions.

▶ Read more about the war powers vote

While President Donald Trump says he’ll take action on Greenland whether its people “ like it or not, ” his newly handpicked U.S. special envoy is setting off on his own approach.

Gov. Jeff Landry, appointed as envoy in December, said he is not interested in meeting diplomats. The Republican has not visited the Arctic island and did not attend Wednesday’s meeting at the White House that included Danish officials, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. However, the governor was scheduled to travel to Washington on Thursday and Friday for meetings that include the topic of Greenland, Landry’s spokesperson Kate Kelly said.

▶ Read more about Landry 's new role

Law enforcement officers at the scene of a reported shooting Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

FILE - Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado gestures to supporters during a protest against President Nicolas Maduro the day before his inauguration for a third term, in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, file)

FILE - President Donald Trump waves after arriving on Air Force One from Florida, Jan. 11, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, File)