Alcatraz
West was sent to the Atlanta Penitentiary (where he first met Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin) and Florida State Prison for hijacking as a car thief. He was sent to Alcatraz in 1957, charged with attempting escape, and became prisoner AZ1335. Morris and the Anglin brothers were sent to Alcatraz in 1960 and 1961, and by September 1961, the four were planning their escape. West, the plot's mastermind, was the only conspirator who did not participate in the actual escape, as he was unable to finish removing the ventilator grill in his cell in time.
By the time West opened his ventilator grill, the others were gone and had taken the life raft with them. With no means of leaving the island, West had no choice but to remain in his cell until the escape was discovered the next morning. After the escape was discovered he gave several interviews to the FBI and prison authorities, during which he provided full details of the escape plan, possibly as some plea bargaining strategy. West was never charged for trying to escape from Alcatraz. Morris and the Anglin brothers were never seen again and their ultimate fate remains unknown.
Read more about this topic: Allen West (prisoner), Biography